6.7

Human-on-Chip-Related Microfluidic Chips

‘Human-on-chip’ measurements take place in the microfluidic setting. The use of

‘multi-organ chips’ and ‘human-on-chip’ models will be useful for drug develop-

ment in the biopharmaceutical and pharmaceutical industry. According to prior

evidence, animal-based and multi-organ research paradigms provide human-centred

and single-organ perspectives. The high-level and low-throughput screenings are

extremely valuable in this kind of study. Additionally, microfluidics has become

more precise because of modern techniques, such as gel electrophoresis, homogene-

ity regulation, chemical gradients, and time-dependent media effects. ‘Human-on-a-

chip’ technology enables researchers to examine physiological, chemical, molecular,

and functional factors in a simulated environment. It contributes to a better under-

standing of compounds’ pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics (Syama and

Mohanan 2021).

6.8

Challenges of Organs-on-a-Chip

Numerous scientists are advancing our understanding to the next level of complexity

in relation to in vivo tissues/organs. Different organs were successfully tested and

worked on, yielding favourable results in literature. ‘Organ- or tissue-on-chip’

systems have a variety of applications in biomedical innovations, but it is important

to note that they are still in their infancy and need to be refined before they are widely

used. It is important to associate these instruments with medications that have

undergone extensive ADME testing and to validate their relevance to clinical

efficacy and toxicity. In addition, the upkeep of these procedures necessitated

specialized preparation. Selection, fabrication, and maintenance of these products

are also necessary skills. In addition to concerns about fabrication and cell mainte-

nance, researchers are sceptical that any in vitro cell culture would ever completely

embody the complexity of whole animal systems. The endocrine, skeletal, and

nervous systems’ adaptive immune responses, as well as complex system level

behaviours, have not been studied. There is also the problem of toxicity, which is

complicated by the fact that in vitro studies only use a few cell or tissue types, but

toxicity can occur in areas of the body where the drug is not targeted.

Companies like ‘TissUse GmbH’, ‘Emulate, Inc.’, ‘MIMETAS Inc.’, ‘Nortis,

Inc.’, ‘AlveoliX AG’, and ‘Hesperos, Inc.’ have emerged in the last 5 years,

demonstrating the critical nature of ‘organ-on-a-chip’ technology in research. The

US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced in April 2017 that it had

entered into a multi-year collaboration agreement with ‘Emulate Inc.’ (a spin-off

of Harvard University’s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering) to

conduct a series of trials utilizing ‘organ-on-a-chip’ technology to develop a toxico-

logical safety assessment testing system (Isoherranen et al. 2019). These findings

show that ‘organ-on-chip’ systems can be used to evaluate human health. ‘Organ-on-

a-chip’ system will eventually be able to incorporate stem cell modern technologies,

microenvironment, and personalization parameters (such as respiratory rate, cardiac

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