Organ-on-a-chip: current gaps and future directions

Abstract

As an emerging hot topic of the last decade, Organ on Chip (OoC) is a new technology that is attracting interest from both basic and translational scientists. The Biochemical Society, with its mission of supporting the advancement of science, with addressing grand challenges that have societal impact, has included OoC into their agenda to review the current state of the art, bottlenecks and future directions. This conference brought together representatives of the main stakeholders in the OoC field including academics, end-users, regulators and technology developers to discuss and identify requirements for this new technology to deliver on par with the expectations and the key challenges and gaps that still need to be addressed to achieve robust human-relevant tools, able to positively impact decision making in the pharmaceutical industry and reduce overreliance on poorly predictive animal models.

Progress of Microfluidic Hydrogel‐Based Scaffolds and Organ‐on‐Chips for the Cartilage Tissue Engineering

“…The present gaps in translating the preclinical discoveries to clinical applications have been the primary motives for tissue engineers to develop innovative OoCs that are capable of closely mimicking the physiological and pathophysiological functions of the tissues and organs. [ 391 ] Since the introduction of OoCs technology, diverse experiments have been conducted so as to explore their features as well as applications for tissues bioengineering such as cartilage TE, in particular. By surmounting the chief obstacles and taking into account the bigger picture, scientists will be able to enter the next phase of this intriguing field of cartilage‐related OoCs.…”

Organ‐on‐a‐chip technologies for biomedical research and drug development: A focus on the vasculature

“…Moreover, there are plenty of challenges to overcome for the widespread adoption of OOC technologies inside the laboratory and within the industry 176 : (a) there is a strong lack of communication between OOC developers and potential users both in academia and industry, (b) there is no widely accepted validation or regulatory framework, (c) there are very few successful business models for the commercialization of OOC technologies, (d) standardization of OCC models is still missing, and at last, (e) high‐throughput is limited. Researchers are increasingly aware of these obstacles and roadmaps are currently under investigation, as large governmental units at the European Commission level and the World Health Organization are pushing toward alternatives to animal models 177,178 …”

“…Researchers are increasingly aware of these obstacles and roadmaps are currently under investigation, as large governmental units at the European Commission level and the World Health Organization are pushing toward alternatives to animal models. 177,178 AUTHOR CONTRIBUTIONS Diosangeles Soto Veliz: Conceptualization (Equal); Investigation (Lead); Visualization (Lead); Writingoriginal draft preparation (Lead); Writing -review and editing (Equal). Kai-Lan Lin: Investigation (Supporting); Visualization (Supporting); Writing -review and editing (Equal).…”

The Art of Building Living Tissues: Exploring the Frontiers of Biofabrication with 3D Bioprinting

“…The advantages of using 3D printed microchips and integrated microfluidics-based extruders could be attributed to the ability to the control gas permeability, perfusion properties, precise positioning of cells, pore size, and morphology required for conducting the above experiments and screening procedures. These OOCs have been used to mimic organ systems such as the kidney, liver, heart/vasculature, brain–blood barrier (BBB), gut, cancerous tissue like tumors, bone/cartilage, and placenta. − …”