The Polymer Society of Korea

Abstract

Microphysiological systems (MPS) have emerged as powerful in vitro platforms for modeling human physiology, yet their widespread adoption in drug screening has been limited by material-dependent constraints on scalability and throughput. In this presentation, we discuss the material transition of microfluidic MPS from polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) to resin and ultimately to polystyrene-based platforms, and how this evolution impacts device throughput, assay robustness, and screening compatibility. By benchmarking chips with identical microarchitectures across different materials, we demonstrate that material-specific properties, including small-molecule absorption, surface stability, and fabrication reproducibility, critically influence drug response measurements. The transition toward thermoplastic platforms enables higher throughput, improved standardization, and seamless integration with conventional screening workflows. These results highlight practical design considerations for developing scalable MPS suitable for reliable drug screening applications.