The great divide between basic drug research and clinical outcomes is being ever-more scrutinised. As we reach greater technological heights in drug development, with new drug formats and biological agents becoming the new normal, the translational capabilities of traditional in vitro and in vivo models become ever more strained. The expression of human drug targets, enzymes, transporters and interacting proteins on appropriate tissues becomes crucial to the successful assessment of a drug candidate. Without them, candidates are likely to be incorrectly categorised, and either put forward at risk or wrongly removed from the pipeline.

Risk of drug-induced liver injury (DILI) in humans is one of the most common culprits for drug attrition. The workhorses of the liver – hepatocytes – are sensitive to damage and stress. For this reason, modeling and prediction of DILI has been challenging in the past due to lack of hepatocyte viability and function in vitro.

Here, we present the use of the PhysioMimix OOC System in developing human and preclinical animal microphysiological systems to decrease the divide between in vitro, in vivo and the clinic in DILI risk assessments. These systems offer the ultimate translation tool to allow greater confidence in progressing candidates to successful clinical trials.