CapiLung - Bio-inspired artificial lung, based on a three-dimensional capillary network

• Applicant: Dr.-Ing. Sebastian Jansen
• Subject Area: Biomedical Systems Technology ; Medical Physics, Biomedical Technology
• Term: since 2025
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 552654183

Despite its proven effectiveness, the use of artificial lungs in extracorporeal circuits (ECMO) for respiratory support is associated with a high risk of complications with mortality rates of up to 50 %. The high mortality and complication rate is attributed to the highly invasive nature of the ECMO therapy. Oxygenators (artificial lungs) require a large foreign surface area that is in contact with blood for sufficient gas transfer. Furthermore, a large volume of the patient’s blood is kept outside the body with corresponding risks of sepsis and systemic inflammation. Today’s oxygenators are exclusively based on hollow fiber membranes (HFM) with high failure rates due to protein deposition and thrombus formation in the oxygenator in long-term applications. Alternatives to the HFM concept are currently being researched, for example by using microfluidic artificial lungs (MAL). In the MAL approach, microscopic flow channels (~100 µm) mimicking the capillary structure are used for the blood-gas transfer. The two-dimensional geometry of the MAL promises a more physiological flow and the potential for miniaturization in order to address the aforementioned complications. However, due to manufacturing limitations, the MALs proposed so far are limited to two-dimensional geometries only with a non-optimal exploitation of the gas exchange surface area. The herein proposed project deals with the extension of the MAL concept to three-dimensional structures in order to create a 3D bio-inspired artificial lung. This project will investigate whether a 3D bio-inspired artificial lung is superior to the current gold standard in the clinic (HFM oxygenators). The bio-inspired 3D capillary geometry will first be analyzed numerically in order to find an optimal geometry for further in-vitro testing. Preliminary work has already demonstrated the feasibility of manufacturing this complex 3D geometry using high-resolution 3D-printing of a dissolvable material together with a dip-spin coating process. This manufacturing concept will further be investigated as part of the project. Finally, test samples of the bio-inspired artificial lung will be produced and compared in-vitro to the HFM reference in terms of biocompatibility, gas transfer efficiency and hydraulic properties. The hypothesis is tested that the 3D bio-inspired geometry is superior to the gold-standard. This will demonstrate the potential of the innovative approach of 3D bio-inspired artificial lungs.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• Co-Investigators: Dr. Johanna Clauser; Dr. Michael Neidlin