The search for more efficient tests of pharmaceuticals without animal
models is taking a stride forward, with a new technology being
developed in the US called Organs-on-Chips. The new miniature platform
and software, which mimic the mechanical and molecular characteristics
of human organs, were developed by bioengineers from the Wyss Institute
for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University.
The device, about the size of a small computer memory stick, is
created using microchip-manufacturing techniques. It features a porous
flexible membrane that separates two channels at the center of the
device. The channels are filled with living human cells and tissues
cultured in a fluid that mimics the environment inside the human body.
Micro-engineering and automated instrumentation allows the system to
perform real-time analysis of biochemical, genetic and metabolic
functions within single cells.
The idea is to authentically replicate, or "bioemulate" in
science-speak, the workings of human organs. This way, scientists and
even clinicians without high-level expertise can determine the efficacy
and safety of potential new drugs, chemicals and cosmetics, with no
animal models in the process.
The Wyss Institute team has formed a company called Emulate to
further develop and market the product. They have also developed a
system to automate the chips and connect them with a blood-like medium
in order to reproduce the experience of the whole human body on chips.
This way, researchers can get a better picture of the responses of the
body as one unit and not just as series of individual organs.
"This advanced technology is the beginning of a revolution in the way
we study human biology and disease," said senior scientist Geraldine
Hamilton. She added that Emulate is more predictive of the human
situation than animal models, besides being more cost-effective and less
time-consuming. Therefore, new pharmaceuticals could get to market, and
to those in need of them, more rapidly.
Another aspect of the new technology is that it paves the way for
more personalized treatment with stem cells. "Our vision is we can one
day put each patient’s cells on chips that mimic the function of organs,
and this will open up new ways for us to design truly personalized
treatment with stem cells, based on each patient’s unique genetic
profile on their own individualized Organs-on-Chips," added Shlomo
Melmed, senior vice president for Academic Affairs and Dean of the
medical faculty at Cedars-Sinai, one of the institutional investors in
the new company.
Emulate has just secured a US$12 million Series A financing to
develop the product for commercial purposes. The team will now focus on
design, biology and engineering in order to further develop the
technology and design new products for various industries.
Besides the lung-on-chip
seen at the top of the page, in the last four years the researchers
have also developed more than 10 types of organ/chips, including some
that emulate the liver, gut, kidney, and bone marrow.
Elsewhere, other researchers are looking for methods to replace animal testing including the similarity ensemble approach and sensor nanoparticles.
SOURCE-GIZMAG
0 comments:
Post a Comment