Development of a 3D Printed Bioreactor to Simulate Tumor Metastasis in vitro

Tumor metastasis is challenging to replicate in vitro. This study aims to replicate solid tumor metastasis in a dynamic flow environment employing an in-house designed and 3D-printed bioreactor. The primary chamber of the bioreactor holds a type 1 collagen plug seeded with the triple-negative breast cancer cells MDA-MB-231. A small-diameter PVC tubing connects the 3D-printed bioreactor with an adjustable flow peristaltic pump. The peristaltic pump pushes cell culture media through the tubing at a physiological flow rate through the primary chamber and into the secondary chamber, which is identical to the first, with an unseeded collagen plug. The secondary chamber can be analyzed to determine if the cells have migrated from the primary site of the seeded chamber to the secondary site. Below the secondary chamber is an integrated media reservoir. The flow of the bioreactor is continuous and in a closed loop, with media being filtered through a capsule filter before reaching the pump. The design of the chamber and the optimal flow rate were determined using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations. The primary goal of this study is to design a cost-effective method of simulated tumor metastasis using 3D printed materials for foundational biochemical studies and drug testing.