Development of Tissue Chips as In Vitro Tools for Disease Modeling and Efficacy Testing

Keynote address by Dr. Passley Hargrove-Grimes from NIH at Innovations in Disease Modeling 2024 online symposium.
Dr. Hargrove-Grimes discussed the revolutionary impact of tissue chips on drug development. Also known as microphysiological systems or organs on chips, these bioengineered devices, roughly the size of a USB thumb drive, replicate key functions of organs and tissues. Composed of various cell types arranged in a 3D tissue structure, tissue chips are exposed to biomechanical forces, such as the stretching of lung tissue to simulate breathing, mimicking the conditions of the human body. Since 2012, the NIH Tissue Chip Program, led by NCATS, has supported the creation of both normal and disease-specific tissue chip models.
In the presentation, Dr. Hargrove-Grimes highlighted how these unique disease models are aiding in the discovery of effective new therapeutics, particularly for rare diseases with limited clinical trials, including rare neuromuscular disorders like chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy and multifocal motor neuropathy.