The anatomy of the female reproductive system is comparable to the elusive “feminine mystique,” as Dina Fine Maron (2017) suggests in her article about the newest technology regarding the female reproductive system. The female reproductive system and menstrual cycle are so intricately connected to so many other parts of the body that scientists lack appropriate means with which to represent them. With the aim to solve this issue, a group of scientists at Northwestern University has created a device much like known organ-on-a-chip technologies to represent the female reproductive system. One scientist working to develop the technology is Shuo Xiao. Xiao works in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology in the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University. As Xiao (2017) explains, the technology has been named EVATAR and it is a microfluidic system that recreates the 28-day menstrual cycle of the female reproductive system using murine ovarian cells and human cells from the fallopian tube, endometrium, and cervix (Xiao 2017).
EVATAR has many different components to recreate the reproductive tract because of the variety of functions performed by the reproductive system. The main functions are the “production of ova, secretion of sex hormones and the maintenance of pregnancy throughout the gestation of healthy offspring,” as explained by Xiao (2017). The organs that make the functions possible include the ovaries, uterus, fallopian tubes, and cervix, with each organ being responsible for autonomous, or independent, and interdependent actions within the reproductive tract. In addition, each of these organs is constituted of different cells. For example, the uterus is composed of endometrium and myometrium. These intricate relationships have hindered studies in toxicology for the female reproductive system, but EVATAR can facilitate these studies by allowing a platform on which to test medications and toxins (Xiao 2017).
Xiao’s (2017) research and testing resulted in a “platform that could sustain tissue-level function for the length of the human menstrual cycle.” In order to integrate the five different organ tissues into a single structure, Xiao’s team used “electromagnetically actuated micro- pumps,” which they called “Quintet-MFP,” to allow for the flow to be controlled in a more practical and precise manner (Xiao 2017). Using the Quintet-MFP, they were able to test whether the system could support the growth of follicles. In order to do this, they used murine follicles because “healthy ovaries are never removed from women, except under extraordinary circumstances such as in the case of a sterilizing cancer diagnosis,” as Xiao (2017) stated. The murine follicles behave the same way as human follicles, allowing this to mimic the human female reproductive tract nevertheless. In order to simulate the 28-day menstrual cycle, Xiao’s team was able to surge the different hormones present in a human’s menstrual cycle at day 0, then reduce to the baseline for days 1 through 14. This is done to mimic the follicular and luteal phases in the human menstrual cycle. After the hormone simulations and ovulation, which is when the follicles release “metaphase II oocytes…, the granulose cells differentiated into luteal cells,” showing that the microfluidic system was able to support the growth of ovarian follicles (Xiao 2017).
In addition to ovarian follicle growth, the microfluidic system also secreted follicle hormones during the simulated menstrual cycle. First, Xiao’s team noted that in the follicular phase, the production of 17β-oestradiol (E2) increased and later peaked at day 0, just like in the human menstrual cycle when the follicle reached maturation. Next, in the luteal phase, the concentrations of progesterone increased and also peaked after two days of the hormone surge. In addition, the team noted that the hormones inhibin A and B, peptide hormones, and 17β- oestradiol (E2) followed the patterns of the human menstrual cycle. This suggested that the microfluidic system was performing just as the human menstrual cycle does, with consistency in the hormone production and ovarian follicle growth (Xiao 2017).
This biotechnology relates to topics we have discussed in class such as antibiotics and their development. This biotechnology can be used to test drugs and contraceptives in order to develop them, similarly to how antibiotics are developed. Scientists must be able to test them somehow, and this technology is aimed to create a new way of doing so. As Xiao (2017) explains, this microfluidic system can be used to test drugs and medications in vitro, which means outside the actual living organism. The system mimics the way the organs within the reproductive tract work together and the flow of hormones throughout the menstrual cycle, proving to be a useful tool in toxicology studies, drug testing, and contraceptive development (Xiao 2017). Many organ-on-a-chip technologies are being developed for the same purpose of drug testing and development (Young 2012). In addition to being used for testing, it is also a useful tool for simply learning more about anatomy, physiology, and diseases such as endometriosis, cancer, and infertility (Maron 2017).
The aim of EVATAR is to help test and develop drugs and contraceptive solutions and also to further study toxicology for the female reproductive system. Since the female reproductive tract utilizes numerous organs in the human body and carries out various roles, it is very difficult to design new technologies for the reproductive system. In addition, the technology will allow for personalized testing of drugs, as Xiao’s team aims to be able to recreate an individual’s, for example, ovaries from their own tissue in order to test certain drugs for that individual (Xiao, 2017). Furthermore, the general idea of organ-on-a-chip technology is focused on drug development. According to Young (2012), pharmaceutical companies mainly test drugs on animals, which is not the most ethical nor conclusive. On the other hand, performing tests on humans is dangerous, so a solution is to test drugs on an external component that can mimic the human body or organ, which is where organ-on-a-chip comes into play (Young, 2012). According to Wikswo (2013), organ-on-a-chip technologies “have made it possible to design scaled and interconnected organ systems that may significantly augment the current drug development pipeline and lead to advances in systems biology,” and Xiao’s microfluidic system of the female reproductive system has the same purpose.
The market for this technology will most likely be the pharmaceutical industry and research facilities, as they may find this biotechnology useful in researching the reproductive tract further for toxicology studies and other topics. Pharmaceuticals can implement this biotechnology instead of testing on animals, which often results in “the predictions from animals [failing] when a compound is tested in humans,” revealing how inconsistent and trustworthy animal testing is, aside from its unethical nature (Young 2012). Pharmaceutical companies can use this technology to also test “dose-response signatures associated with pharmaceutical and environmental toxicity” (Shintu 2012). This biotechnology can aid in developing all medical information, pharmaceutical drugs, and contraceptives relating to the female reproductive tract. Society at large can benefit from this biotechnology because once it is implemented and used in pharmaceutical companies and research facilities, it will allow for there to be new medications and contraceptives available on the market.
I am very excited about this biotechnology because it brings to the forefront many different issues in the medical community, as well as society in general. The female reproductive tract is something scientists should be focusing on, as there are many aspects of how it works that are still unknown, as it is a very complex biological system. It is responsible for so many things in a woman’s body, and there should be more options on drugs and contraceptives that are not harmful to women. In addition, the organ-on-a-chip technology, in general, is extremely exciting because I believe animal testing needs to come to an end. This field of biotechnology provides a safe way to determine whether the medications we use all the time are safe or not. It allows us to see the “in’s” and “out’s” of the human body without actually going inside one, per se. I would not use the actual biotechnology as it is meant for research and drug testing, but I would reap the benefits, as new medications and contraceptives would be available in the long run. If scientists are able to develop new medications, or even just gain a more in-depth grasp on the female reproductive system itself, I will be affected since I am a woman and I plan to have children in the future.
A pro of this biotechnology is the safe way of testing drugs on the female reproductive tract. This biotechnology could allow for developments in toxicology studies and in contraceptives. Cons of this biotechnology are the risks involved in scientists taking advantage of it, specifically with controversial goals in mind. It may be misused and be converted into an alternative to an actual woman’s reproductive system. This idea takes a very “sci-fi” turn, but if misused, scientists may turn it into an artificial womb or something similar, which would raise many ethical concerns regarding the miracle of life, and how far society may go in the realm of artificial reproduction.
Although this biotechnology itself will probably not be something people purchase for themselves, it will be used to develop new medications and contraceptives in general, allowing an increase of safe medications and contraceptives in the market. Since these are very limited as of now, considering the lack of knowledge and availability of testing techniques for the female reproductive tract, having a new way to test drugs would allow for the increased development of these items. Having more options for these items would decrease costs in general, as there would be competition in the market between pharmaceutical companies, which will lower the costs on average. Furthermore, the menstrual cycle-on-a-chip technology is similar to other organ-on-a-chip technologies since it is an organ-on-a-chip by definition, and the goal is the same—to test drugs and learn more about the specified organ.
Through the use of Xiao’s (2017) microfluidic culture model, the pharmaceutical industry now has a new means through which they can test new drugs and contraceptives, both of which are drugs that are very limited in society today. In addition to the benefits on the market, this biotechnology allows for studies on toxicology and on the biology of the female reproductive tract to be further developed. Hopefully, EVATAR will enable women to receive better care and options when it comes to their reproductive health. Reproduction as a whole, which is possibly the most important process of nature, will be better understood by the scientific community through the use of this biotechnology.