Put This Liver To The Test

Posted on December 26th, 2012 by Dr. Francis Collins

Growth of blood vessels (red) enables implanted human ectopic artificial livers (HEALs) to grow and function in the mouse. This miniature human liver was removed from a HEAL-humanized mouse. Mice implanted with these organs are particularly useful for monitoring drug metabolism, drug-drug interactions, and predicting how certain drugs can damage and destroy the human liver.