Indian Placenta-on-Chip Replicates 4 Functions for Drug R&D
Indian researchers have developed a placenta-on-chip that replicates four key maternal-fetal barrier functions—hormone production, glucose transport, urea clearance, and selective permeability—offering pharma a scalable tool for drug safety screening. The device’s response to hyperglycemic conditions mimics gestational diabetes, and its design using conventional well plates enables wide adoption across pharmaceutical R&D labs, potentially cutting costs and accelerating regulatory-required fetal toxicity assessments.