Researchers Develop Small Device that Copies Real-Life Organs

Researchers have developed a chip that functions like real-life organs. Scientists from the University of Cambridge collaborated with researchers from France, Greece, and Saudi Arabia to create an “organ-on-a-chip” that simulates real human tissues. The new invention gives cells a more realistic environment to grow in. Typically, cells are cultivated on a petri dish so that drugs or toxins can be tested on them. Although using petri dishes has yielded some good results in the past, the difference between the environment in the dishes and in real-life organs sometimes leads to inaccurate results. Some researchers even test animals for more accuracy. Now, because the new invention functions more like real organs, lab tests are expected to be more accurate and animal testing may also be reduced. The new device was designed to have a sponge-like structure. Cells from any organ can be placed inside the device and left to grow. The device can then be placed inside a plastic tube where the cells are soaked in nutrients. The use of the sponge structure instead of a rigid structure provides a more natural environment for cells. It also allows the cells growing in it to react to stimuli like toxins or drugs the same way cells in live organs would. The device is different from previously created organs-on-a-chip because any cell from any organ can be cultivated in it. In contrast, other organs-on-a-chip have been designed to cultivate cells from specific organs. For instance, University of Washington developed a kidney-on-a-chip in cooperation with biotechnology company Nortis, Inc. The chip can hold over 5,000 kidney cells, where drugs for kidney diseases could be tested on.