An immune system model that can be studied outside of the body is being developed by researchers at Amgen British Columbia (BC) using human tonsil tissue and 3D bioprinting.
Making a platform that can more quickly and accurately predict immune reactions to new medications is the study’s aim.
The scientists found that human tonsil tissue could be cultured in the lab to produce 3D clusters that functioned just like immune cells do naturally.
It has already been proven that the platform works with substances that are known to either provoke or prevent immune reactions.
The cells functioned normally in both situations.
Tonsil organoids expand the platform for developing a customizable immune system for drugs.
By creating an internal biobank of tonsil tissue, the researchers hope to enhance the tonsil organoid platform.
This will give them the chance to look at a more varied population and learn more about the various immune reactions to the drugs Amgen has developed.
To create immune tissue,
the group has also teamed up with FluidForm, a business that specializes in human tissue bioprinting technology. The tissue will be built using engineered molecules and cells, and will then be 3D bioprinted using FluidForm’s FRESH platform.
This strategy gives more control over various immune responses because it enables the customization or engineering of all essential components.
Amgen’s testing phase
During the drug development process, predicting immune reactions to protein-based medications is a significant challenge.
Before a drug enters clinical trials,
the newly created immune tissue platform may be able to determine whether it will cause an immune response.
In turn, this will lessen the possibility of a trial failure. The group thinks that this platform might help with the creation of new antibodies.
The immune tissue project and Amgen’s clinical immunology
division are collaborating closely to assess the likelihood of immune reactions to drugs under development.
When the drug is in the clinic, the conventional assessment platforms have trouble predicting the reasons for immune reactions.
The immune tissue platform may decrease the likelihood of clinical trial failure brought on by immune reactions to drugs.
3d printing makes drug testing easier
A 3D-printed tissue platform that was created by researchers from the University of Stuttgart and Robert Bosch Hospital offers an alternative to using animals in clinical trials. The German state of Baden-Württemberg provided funding for the project for €3.8 million. The goal of the project was to develop an ex vivo tissue model for testing the effectiveness of cancer treatments. To provide more accurate estimates of tumour progression, the joint team intended to build skin-like microfluidic structures using a 3D bioprinter and simulation data.
A group of scientists from North Carolina’s Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine (WFIRM) have completed the 3D bioprinting of a microscopic model of the human body.
The majority of the vital organs are represented in this laboratory model, which will be used to find potential drug side effects before human testing.
The professionals believe that this advanced lab model will be crucial in accelerating the drug development process,
lowering the costs associated with clinical trials,
and reducing the need for animal testing.
It’s amazing to see 3d printing progress in real-time.
