Context:
Researchers from ICMR–National Institute for Research on Women’s Health (ICMR-NIRRWH), Mumbai and IIT Bombay have developed a placenta-on-a-chip model that closely mimics the human placenta. The innovation will help scientists study how drugs, nutrients, hormones and harmful substances pass from the mother to the foetus, enabling safer pregnancy research.
Background:
- Placenta is a temporary organ that develops during pregnancy and connects the foetus to the mother’s uterus through the umbilical cord.
- It facilitates the exchange of oxygen, nutrients, hormones and antibodies while removing carbon dioxide and metabolic wastes from the foetus.
- The placenta also acts as a selective biological barrier, preventing many microbes and toxins from reaching the foetus, although some drugs and pathogens can cross it.
- Placenta-on-a-chip is an organ-on-a-chip technology that recreates the placental interface using human placental cells, endothelial cells and a porous membrane to simulate maternal–foetal exchange.
- The model can study the transfer of drugs, nutrients, pollutants and infectious agents, reducing dependence on animal models, which often fail to accurately replicate human pregnancy.
- It can improve research on pregnancy-related disorders such as pre-eclampsia, gestational diabetes, and foetal growth restriction, and support the development of safer medicines for pregnant women.
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