Organ-on-a-Chip for Drug Screening: A Bright Future for Sustainability? A Critical Review

Globalization has raised concerns about spreading diseases and emphasized the need for quick and efficient methods for drug screening. Established drug efficacy and toxicity approaches have proven obsolete, with a high failure rate in clinical trials. Organ-on-a-chip has emerged as an essential alternative to outdated techniques, precisely simulating important characteristics of organs and predicting drug pharmacokinetics more ethically and efficiently. Although promising, most organ-ona-chip devices are still manufactured using principles and materials from the micromachining industry. The abusive use of plastic for traditional drug screening methods and device production should be considered when substituting technologies so that the compensation for the generation of plastic waste can be projected. This critical review outlines recent advances for organ-on-a-chip in the industry and estimates the possibility of scaling up its production. Moreover, it analyzes trends in organ-on-a-chip publications and provides suggestions for a more sustainable future for organ-on-a-chip research and production.

Automated summary

Globalization has increased concerns about disease transmission and the need for efficient drug screening methods. Organ-on-a-chip technology has emerged as a viable alternative, simulating organ characteristics and predicting drug effects accurately. However, most devices still rely on materials from the micromachining industry, raising concerns about the environmental impact of plastic waste. This critical review discusses recent advances and scalability of organ-on-a-chip technology, as well as the importance of sustainability in research and production.