From beating hearts to breathing lungs, organs-on-chips are some of hottest new tools for human biology research. Although these devices may bear closer resemblance to computer components than human body parts, scientists have now created working models for a whole range of organs, including the liver, the lung, and even the female reproductive system.
Researchers hope to use these devices to model disease and facilitate drug development. “I think for most people, the goal is to replace animal testing and to carry out personalized medicine in a more effective way,” Donald Ingber, the founding director of the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University, tells The Scientist.
Little Lungs
A lung alveolus chip with air-filled (yellow) and blood-like medium-filled (blue) channels, both lined with human cells to mimic organ-level function. WYSS INSTITUTE AT HARVARD UNIVERSITY
At the Wyss Institute, scientists have developed about 15 different human organs on chips. ...
