Fig. 5

Mimicking the uterus and endometrium on the chip. (A) A uterine-on-a-chip co-cultured with oocytes and endometrial stromal cells. Perfusion channels at the bottom of the uterine bionic microfluidic chip provide luteinizing hormone and estrogen through the porous membrane pores to the endometrial stromal cells cultured on the porous membrane, which regulate the proliferation and differentiation of the endometrial tissues to facilitate successful embryo implantation. Reproduced with permission [15]. Copyright 2015 Elsevier B.V. (B) Fertilized embryos cultured in the microfluidic uterine microarrays of Fig. 5A showed a significant increase in the rate of embryo development compared to culturing in 96-well plates alone or co-culturing with endometrial stromal cells in 96-well plates. Reproduced with permission [15]. Copyright 2015 Elsevier B.V. (C) Perivascular endometrial stromal microarrays composed of human primary umbilical vein endothelial cells and endometrial stromal cells. Reproduced with permission [63]. Copyright 2019 Oxford University Press. (D) Micro-engineered vascularized endometrial chips consisting of human endometrial epithelial cells, stromal fibroblasts and vascular endothelial cells. Angiogenic activity increased significantly with culture time. Reproduced with permission [65]. Copyright 2021 Oxford University Press. (E) Dual reproductive organ chip to simulate cross-talk between ovary and endometrium. The ovarian chamber contains granulosa cells and theca cells while the endometrial chamber contains endometrial stem cells, fibroblasts, vessel cells, collagen, hyaluronic acid and agarose. Reproduced with permission [68]