title: Diffusive Silicon Nanopore Membranes for Hemodialysis Applications.
abstract: Hemodialysis using hollow-fiber membranes provides life-sustaining treatment for nearly 2 million patients worldwide with end stage renal disease (ESRD). However, patients on hemodialysis have worse long-term outcomes compared to kidney transplant or other chronic illnesses. Additionally, the underlying membrane technology of polymer hollow-fiber membranes has not fundamentally changed in over four decades. Therefore, we have proposed a fundamentally different approach using microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) fabrication techniques to create thin-flat sheets of silicon-based membranes for implantable or portable hemodialysis applications. The silicon nanopore membranes (SNM) have biomimetic slit-pore geometry and uniform pores size distribution that allow for exceptional permeability and selectivity. A quantitative diffusion model identified structural limits to diffusive solute transport and motivated a new microfabrication technique to create SNM with enhanced diffusive transport. We performed in vitro testing and extracorporeal testing in pigs on prototype membranes with an effective surface area of 2.52 cm2 and 2.02 cm2, respectively. The diffusive clearance was a two-fold improvement in with the new microfabrication technique and was consistent with our mathematical model. These results establish the feasibility of using SNM for hemodialysis applications with additional scale-up.
authors.affiliation: Division of Nephrology, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Steven
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Benjamin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Feinberg
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Rishi
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kant
authors.affiliation: Ben Chui Consulting, Sunnyvale, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Benjamin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Chui
authors.affiliation: H-Cubed, Olmsted Falls, Ohio, United States of America.
authors.forename: Ken
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Goldman
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Jaehyun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Park
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Willieford
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Moses
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America.|Silicon Kidney, LLC, San Francisco, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Charles
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Blaha
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Zohora
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Iqbal
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Clarence
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Chow
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America.|Silicon Kidney, LLC, San Francisco, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Nathan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Wright
authors.affiliation: Silicon Kidney, LLC, San Francisco, California, United States of America.|Division of Nephrology & Hypertension, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America.
authors.forename: William H
authors.initials: WH
authors.lastname: Fissell
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Pennsylvania State University, State College, Pennsylvania, United States of America.
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zydney
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America.|Silicon Kidney, LLC, San Francisco, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Shuvo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Roy
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004058:Diffusion; D006801:Humans; D007676:Kidney Failure, Chronic / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D058608:Nanopores; D011108:Polymers / Q000737:chemistry / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006435:Renal Dialysis / Q000379:methods*; D012825:Silicon / Q000737:chemistry / Q000627:therapeutic use; D012996:Solutions / Q000737:chemistry; D013552:Swine
chemical_list: D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D011108:Polymers; D012996:Solutions; D012825:Silicon