Affiliation:
1. Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, China
2. Tianjin Key Laboratory of Functional Crystal Materials, Institute of Functional Crystal, Tianjin University of Technology, Tianjin 300384, China
Abstract
Drug discovery is an expensive, long, and complex process, usually with a high degree of uncertainty. In order to improve the efficiency of drug development, effective methods are demanded to screen lead molecules and eliminate toxic compounds in the preclinical pipeline. Drug metabolism is crucial in determining the efficacy and potential side effects, mainly in the liver. Recently, the liver-on-a-chip (LoC) platform based on microfluidic technology has attracted widespread attention. LoC systems can be applied to predict drug metabolism and hepatotoxicity or to investigate PK/PD (pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics) performance when combined with other artificial organ-on-chips. This review discusses the liver physiological microenvironment simulated by LoC, especially the cell compositions and roles. We summarize the current methods of constructing LoC and the pharmacological and toxicological application of LoC in preclinical research. In conclusion, we also discussed the limitations of LoC in drug discovery and proposed a direction for improvement, which may provide an agenda for further research.
Funder
National Natural Science Foundation of China
National Defense Science and Technology 173 Program
National Key Research and Development Program of China
Cited by
2 articles.
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