Report 2023

Institute of Human Biology

The Institute of Human Biology (IHB) was founded in Basel for the purpose of using and promoting new human model systems such as miniature cultured organs in drug discovery and the early phases of drug development. Recent breakthroughs in the use of human cell culture technologies have shown that they can predict clinical safety, efficacy and pharmacokinetics with great accuracy. The data from these new tissue and disease models will supplement the in silico algorithms used for modelling and simulation. Work in this emerging field focuses on organoids – tiny, self-assembled three-dimensional tissue constructs derived from stem cells – and organ-on-a-chip technology. Such next-generation cultures can be designed to replicate the structural and functional complexity of a human organ or express certain aspects of it, for example only to produce certain tissue types. Organ-on-a-chip technology enables researchers to cultivate human cells representing organs under physiological conditions such as mechanical stimulation.

The institute brings together researchers from the scientific community and industry to promote the wide-scale introduction of human model systems in pharmaceutical research and development.

Project name: Institute of Human Biology
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