Drug Testing

Not only are stem cells used to regenerate organs, but they can also be used to test drog toxicity. Using stem cells, specifically iPSCs, to model human tissue, scientists get greater insight into how drugs will interact with the human body.

Today, new drugs go through extensive screening that involves testing on animals. However, drugs that are safe for animals may be harmful to humans. “Many of the animal models out there are poor, demonstrating great efficacy in the mouse, but not repeating in man during late-stage clinical trials. Therefore having an in vitro model years before, which can actually recapitulate human disease, would be a huge advantage,” says Adam Rosenthal, senior director for strategic and corporate development at iPierian, a biopharmaceutical company based in San Francisco, California.

Companies such as Cellular Dynamics International generate and sell human iPSCs that can used for drug testing. Many marketed drugs have been withdrawn because they caused cardiac arrythmias in the users. This unforeseen side effect went undetected in animal testing. However, testing on human tissue can reveal any side effects that drugs may cause.

People of different ethnicities respond to drugs in different ways. Scientists can develop specific drugs for individual patients by experimenting on stem cell lines generated from the patient's stem cells. The use of stem cells in drug development and screening significantly benefits the endless search for cures.

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