FIGURE 8.

Viral deposition tracing using Lenti-X-Lentivirus, a transduced non-replicating virus. Epithelial cells in each of three compartments are infected with virus expressing red fluorescent protein following exposure to physiological flow conditions. (A–C) Top row images (all the same scale) show cell-level magnification, while the bottom rows (D–I) show stitched microscopy images to view each compartment entirely. (D–F) Infection supports the airflow crosstalk in the chip’s multi-compartments, as the transfer of virus is witnessed in each compartment downstream from the nasal passages. The bottom row (G–I) shows the control experiment, in the absence of any airflow applied, and showing thus the lack of airflow-mediated airborne transport. The figure represents one of three experiments yielding similar results.