Check out Matthias and Olga's innovative intestinal organoid culture. Together let's accelerate medical research and create breakthroughs in drug development. Small changes, large impact. Challenge the paradigm!
Founding Director, Roche's Institute of Human Biology (IHB), Professor of Life Sciences (EPFL)
Imagine growing a miniature version of the human intestine in the lab to study gut biology and disease in great detail, and to test medicines before clinical trials. We are thrilled to share our latest publication on bioengineered human mini-intestines that remarkably emulate the natural gut's physiology. You can find our work here: https://lnkd.in/eac9V_KM ? By integrating #bioengineering and advancements in #organoid culture, we have developed human mini-colon tissues that replicate the anatomical structure, homeostatic cell turnover, and cellular diversity of the natural colon. This breakthrough has enabled us to generate tissues from the small intestine and study colon function in real-time. ? Our research demonstrates that human mini-intestines provide a powerful tool for assessing drug safety profiles and predicting drug-induced toxicities. Mini-colons have been successfully used to replicate the stem cell-targeted cytotoxicity and barrier disruption of anti-tumor drugs. We believe that these mini-intestines-on-a-chip have significant potential for drug development, facilitating studies of drug mechanisms of action, toxicity mechanisms, and preclinical optimization to reduce adverse events in clinical trials. ? These bioengineered organoids also offer interesting opportunities for exploratory gut research, for example for modeling the intestinal epithelial barrier and its functions in vitro. Additionally, they allow for the inclusion of other cell types, such as immune cells and fibroblasts, to enhance our understanding of multifactorial and complex diseases, including colorectal cancer and inflammatory bowel disease. ? This project was spearheaded by Olga Mitrofanova and supported by our co-authors Mike Nikolaev, Quan Xu, Nicolas Broguiere, Irineja ?ubela, Gray Camp, and Michael Bscheider as a collaborative effort between Roche's Institute of Human Biology (IHB), Roche pRED, and EPFL School of Life Sciences. We extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone for their invaluable contributions!!