Mini organs in a dish mimic menstrual cycle

摘要

ITS ovulation in the lab. A simulated female reproductive system behaves almost like the real thing over 28 days. "Menstruation in a dish is one of my goals," says Julie Kim of Northwestern University in Chicago. Kim works with organoids - small 3D clumps of tissue that behave more naturally than traditional, flat cell cultures. Linking different organoids together enables researchers to study complex organ systems in miniature, an approach that could lead to new insights and less animal testing.