NC3Rs grant awarded to ECRC Researcher

Professor Val Brunton from the Edinburgh Cancer Research Centre has been awarded an NC3Rs grant, along with collaborator Professor Darryl Overby from Imperial, to develop and validate a next-generation "explant-in-chip" device that preserves the viability and function of living tissues outside the body for ex vivo screening and analysis.

 The Brunton lab is a world leader in experimental metastasis, and the Overby lab pioneered the development of the explant-in-chip model.

Most studies of experimental metastasis rely on in vivo models, typically mice. The explant-in-chip model provides an alternative for more efficient animal use because, from a single animal, many explants can be isolated and exposed to different treatment conditions. In this way, the explant-in-chip model can reduce, refine, and potentially replace animal usage in metastasis research. A further benefit is that because the explant-in-chip design is compatible with time-lapse microscopy, it is possible to investigate the spatiotemporal dynamics of cancer cell interactions. Comparable in vivo studies would require intravital microscopy and implantation of optical windows.