The development of 3-dimensional implantable liver organoids

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Liver disease is the 5th most common cause of death in the UK. 16,087 people in the UK died from liver disease in 2008, a 4.5% increase since 2007 and trends are rising. Liver disease kills more people than diabetes and road deaths combined. The only curative option for end-stage cirrhosis and acute liver failure is liver transplantation, however organ availability cannot meet demand and many patients die waiting for an organ. Those who undergo transplantation require lifelong treatment with increased risks of infection, cancer, kidney and heart disease. Thus, there is a clear need to identify alternatives to liver transplantation. Recent studies have shown that human cells can small fragments of liver like tissue. While providing proof of concept, the tissue is very small and lacks key liver functions. To address this we have assembled a team with complementary expertise to reliably produce human liver tissue with clinically relevant function.