Creating A Shigella Infection Model Using Organs-On-Chips

Shigella are bacteria causing Shigellosis, a gastrointestinal disease characterized by severe stomach cramps, fever, and diarrhea. The onset of symptoms can start within 1-2 days of contact, resulting from the rapid invasion of the pathogen into intestinal epithelial cells, which leads to the destruction of healthy human colon tissue.

Studying Shigella has been challenging due to the fact that this pathogen only infects humans. Traditional animal models are, therefore, unsuitable for research. Additionally, conventional cellular in vitro models fail to accurately replicate the infection process. Consequently, it has been difficult to examine the inception of Shigella and how it interacts with the epithelial barrier at the tissue scale, leaving a critical gap in scientific understanding.

However, leveraging Organs-on-Chips technology offers a promising solution. Learn how a human Intestine-Chip can be utilized to test the infectivity of Shigella through several experimental approaches, such as real-time imaging, tissue cross-section analysis, and conventional microbiology.