A tiny model human liver

A human liver organoid.
A human liver organoid.
Credit: Cincinnati Children’s / Max Planck

This bright-field microscopic image shows a three-day-old human liver organoid grown by a team of American and German scientists.

The tiny liver – suspended in solution inside an under-lit petri dish well – is about 10 mm wide. Generated from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs), the miniature organs are being developed for their potential to study and treat liver disease.

The research is reported in Nature.

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