While the animal research industry continues to breed, buy, cage, torture, and kill sentient beings, progressive scientists are busy proving that human-relevant science is not only possible but, in fact, better for us all. Highlights in science from the last month are below.
How Beauty’s NAMs Playbook is Reshaping Life Sciences
Ryan Willingham, BioSpectrum, 5/1/2026
“What began as a regulatory constraint in the cosmetics and personal care industry has quietly evolved into one of the most formative case studies in modern life sciences. Beauty companies forced to move away from animal testing years ahead of most sectors, validated, and scaled new approach methodologies (NAMs) in real-world development environments. The lessons learnt from skin-focused NAMs are informing applications far beyond cosmetics.”
“The cosmetics industry succeeded with NAMs not by attempting to replace animal models one-to-one, but by starting with the right scientific questions. Companies focused first on identifying the endpoints that NAMs could address more accurately than animal tests. They expanded complexity only after gaining regulatory and industry confidence, allowing scientific validation and regulatory trust to grow together. In doing so, cosmetics also raised expectations for NAM quality.”
“The same skin-based NAMs used in cosmetics are now being applied in other areas of life sciences research. . . . NAMs validated in cosmetics support early-stage decision-making in drug development. They are used to generate mechanistic insight before systemic studies and to reduce animal use earlier in the pipeline. Despite different end goals, cosmetics and pharma often rely on similar NAM architectures, highlighting the transferability of these systems.” 📰 Full Story →
3D-bioprinted human skin model expands options for preclinical research
Marla Broadfoot, Mayo Clinic, 5/5/2026
“For Saranya Wyles, M.D., Ph.D., a dermatologist and researcher at Mayo Clinic, the journey into 3D bioprinting began not with an ambitious plan to reinvent tissue engineering, but with a practical problem. Her team needed a better way to test new therapies. ‘We were trying to find a preclinical model to develop an FDA application,’ Dr. Wyles explains. Traditional approaches rely heavily on animal testing, but skin biology varies widely across species. Even commonly used preclinical models fall short when it comes to mimicking human skin conditions such as eczema. At the same time, alternatives such as donated human skin samples — often surgical waste — can only survive for a few days in the lab. That limitation makes it difficult to study chronic diseases or long-term treatment effects. Faced with these constraints, Dr. Wyles and her team asked a bold question: What if they could build human skin from scratch?”
“The answer took shape through 3D bioprinting, an emerging technology that uses ‘bioinks’ — mixtures of living cells and supportive materials — to construct tissues. . . . The result is a structured tissue that mirrors key features of human skin, including stratified layers and pigment-producing cells. Crucially, the model uses entirely human-derived components, including a plant-based recombinant collagen that avoids the variability and immune risks associated with animal-derived materials.”
“Bioprinted human skin models offer a promising alternative — one that is not only more biologically relevant, but also faster, more scalable and more ethical. ‘From both an ethical and a financial standpoint, the difference is enormous,’ Dr. Wyles says.” 📰 Full Story →
New method matures lab-grown heart cells for better research
University of Toronto Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering, News Medical Life Sciences, 5/5/2026
“Researchers at the University of Toronto’s Institute of Biomedical Engineering have developed a new method to mature lab-grown heart cells, so they more closely resemble adult human heart tissue. . . . Human stem cell-derived heart cells are widely used in research because they can model human biology without relying on animal testing. However, these cells typically behave more like fetal or newborn heart cells rather than adult ones, limiting their usefulness.”
“‘One of the most common reasons that a promising new medication doesn’t make it to patients is that it shows signs of cardiotoxicity in clinical trials,’ says Callaghan. ‘Animal models often aren’t very reliable in predicting this cardiotoxicity, and as a result it is slower and more expensive to produce effective drugs. Ultimately, patients are left waiting. We hope that these new methods can help to improve our predictions of cardiotoxicity in pharmaceutical testing.’” 📰 Full Story →
From sci-fi inspiration to real-world impact, biotech company advances 3D printing frontier
South Dakota Biotech, Sioux Falls Business with Jodi Schwan, 5/7/2026
“Rapid City-based B9Creations is part of a new generation of companies pushing the boundaries of 3D printing — not as a novelty but as a precision manufacturing tool solving complex, real-world problems.”
“One of the company’s most promising growth areas is bioprinting, which involves creating structures that can interact with or even replicate human tissue. Applications range from medical devices that dissolve in the body to advanced research models used to test drugs or study disease. ‘There’s a big push away from animal testing, but we still need to understand how something will react in humans,’ . . . By printing biomaterials such as hydrogels, researchers can grow human cells in three-dimensional environments that more closely mimic the body rather than traditional lab methods.” 📰 Full Story →
Industrializing Organoids to Bridge the Predictability Gap
Priya Baraniak, The Medicine Maker, 5/11/2026
“The biopharmaceutical industry currently finds itself at a precarious intersection of unprecedented innovation and antiquated validation. We have unlocked unprecedented capabilities in gene editing and cell engineering, yet the fundamental mechanism we use to determine if a drug is safe for humans remains tethered to the past. The industry standard, animal testing, is costly, ethically fraught, and often fails to predict human biological responses. Over 90 percent of drug candidates that successfully pass animal testing fail in human clinical trials. This staggering attrition rate highlights a fundamental gap in our preclinical validation processes; we are trying to cure human diseases using non-human proxies that simply cannot replicate our complex biology.”
“The solution lies in New Approach Methodologies (NAMs), specifically induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived organoids, organ-on-a-chip platforms, and microphysiological systems. However, unlocking their potential requires us to move beyond bespoke science and embrace an industrialized, engineering-first approach. . . . If we can solve the standardization crisis and close the regulatory predictability gap, the potential of organoid technology is limitless. We are moving toward a future of personalized medicine, where we can model an individual’s biological responses before the first dose of a drug, cell therapy, or gene therapy is ever administered.” 📰 Full Story →
Harvard scientists win £50,000 prize for breakthrough ‘cervix microchip’
Becca Monaghan, Indy100, 5/12/2026
“Medical researchers and campaigners have repeatedly warned that women’s health remains one of the most underfunded areas of modern healthcare. . . . Against that backdrop, a breakthrough in female reproductive science has received international recognition for its potential to advance research without the use of animal testing.”
“Dr Izadifar leads the development of the Cervix Chip and sensor-integrated system and has contributed to a broader multidisciplinary team effort developing Organ-on-chip models of the female reproductive tract. . . . Dr Izadifar and her team have developed an ‘organ-on-chip’ device small enough to fit in the palm of a hand, designed to replicate the biology of human vaginal and cervical tissue. . . . Equipped with tiny electrical sensors, the microchip enables scientists to observe how human cells respond in real time to hormones, beneficial bacteria and infections. Researchers say the technology could help deepen understanding of vaginal health, infertility and the causes of pre-term birth.”
“‘These models are already enabling breakthroughs in understanding infection, fertility, and disease, while accelerating the development of safer, more effective treatments – offering a scalable path to replace animal testing and improve global women’s health outcomes.’” 📰 Full Story →
The Changing Landscape of New Approach Methodologies
Paul Brooks, Med City News, 5/13/2026
“The past year has marked a turning point for New Approach Methodologies (NAMs) in preclinical drug development. No longer experimental curiosities, these human-relevant approaches have rapidly gained traction, driven by a growing evidence pool and major regulatory reforms. There is rising pressure on regulators to support drug developers to look beyond in vivo animal testing. As a result, NAM adoption is evolving into a global movement, recognizing that these advanced, human-relevant, animal-free approaches can bring new treatment options to patients faster and with greater predictive accuracy.”
“Animal research has historically been central to drug discovery, enabling researchers to evaluate how drugs behave in a whole living system prior to human trials. However, with only one in ten drugs entering phase I trials going on to receive regulatory approval, the disconnect between the preclinical lab and the clinic is clear. These drug failures are not only costly, but can result in unnecessary animal use – all driven by the inherent, inter-species differences that limit the predictive value of animal models. Now more than ever, NAMs need to be considered a core aspect of modern drug development – and scientists, decision-makers, regulators and governments must keep pace with this evolving landscape to ensure they are equipped to deliver the next-generation of therapies.”
“2025 saw unprecedented regulatory shifts shine a spotlight on the NAMs sector. . . . There is, however, still work to be done, particularly in educating researchers about where NAMs deliver the most value. Many organizations want to integrate these methods as an alternative to animal models, but are less certain about how to deploy them effectively. There is an important role for NAMs providers to play in education and awareness – showing people what is possible, the applications, and what sort of data they can generate, will help to drive broader adoption of these technologies.” 📰 Full Story →
Living ‘tumour on a chip’ could offer new brain cancer insights
News Editor, Health Tech World, 5/14/2026
“A living ‘tumour-on-chip’ is being developed to study glioblastoma and how drugs might best reach the aggressive brain cancer. The system is designed to mimic key features of the human brain inside a small laboratory device. Researchers hope it could offer fresh insight into how glioblastoma tumours grow and provide a more human-relevant way to test potential treatments before clinical trials.”
“‘Current laboratory models, including those that rely on animals, often fail to accurately reflect how glioblastoma behaves in the human brain, meaning many potential drugs show promise in early testing but do not work in patients. We are creating a platform which more accurately reflects the human brain environment and has potential to fundamentally change how glioblastoma treatments are developed. This project represents an important step toward more predictive, ethical and impactful cancer research.’”
“The team says the model could offer a more accurate, human-relevant way to test chemotherapies, paving the way for new treatments and improving the chances of promising drugs reaching patients. The work could also replace the need for large numbers of animals in early-stage glioblastoma drug studies. . . . ‘It will support the development of a next-generation glioblastoma model that addresses urgent challenges in drug discovery while reducing reliance on animal experimentation.’” 📰 Full Story →
VoxCell BioInnovation and adMare partner to validate bioprinted vascularised cancer tissue models for antibody therapy development
Manufacturing Chemist, 5/14/2026
“VoxCell BioInnovation and adMare BioInnovations have announced a new research partnership to validate both the scientific and commercial viability of a novel antibody-based immune-modulating therapy. The therapy will use VoxCell’s human-relevant vascularised cancer tissue models, which it creates by combining human tumour, immune and stromal compartments with a perfused, endothelial-lined vasculature in a single bioprinted construct. Its models are designed to support large biologics, immune-modulating therapies and other modalities in which antibody transport, endothelial barrier function and immune complexity drive in vivo behaviour.”
“The duo have announced the partnership as the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advances its plan to reduce animal testing for monoclonal antibodies and other biologics, thus expanding the use of New Approach Methodologies (NAMs) to improve preclinical translation rates.”
“‘Animal models often miss the biology that determines whether a human drug works,’ added Dr Karolina Valente, CEO and Chief Scientific Officer of VoxCell. ‘Our vascularised tissues bring perfusion, endothelial barriers, immune cells and stroma into one human-relevant system.’” 📰 Full Story →
‘Living’ lab models by NUS Dentistry team could make developing medical treatments safer, faster
Zhaki Abdullah, The Strait Times, 5/18/2026
“While the process of developing treatments for diseases typically involves testing drugs on cells in petri dishes, the stiff, sterile plastic of such laboratory equipment cannot accurately replicate conditions within the human body. Now, researchers from the National University of Singapore’s Faculty of Dentistry (NUS Dentistry) have developed ‘living’ laboratory models that can change over time, just like real human tissue. This could eventually make the development of treatments cheaper, safer and more effective, as well as allow them to reach patients more quickly.”
“The method employs advanced hydrogel-based systems – soft materials that mimic human tissue. . . . In a statement, NUS Dentistry said this tackles a longstanding issue in biomedical research – that tests are often conducted in overly simplified laboratory models that do not reflect how human tissue actually behaves. ‘These traditional systems often fail to predict real-life outcomes, contributing to lengthy development cycles and continued reliance on animal testing,’ the faculty said.” 📰 Full Story →
Organoids: AI meets the end of animal testing
Maija Palmer, Global Corporate Venturing, 5/19/2026
“[The investment arm of biopharmaceutical company MSD, the Global Health Innovation Fund] is backing AI companies with the potential to transform everything from drug discovery to clinical trials and diagnostics. But one emerging area that [Dave Rubin, managing director at Global Health Innovation Fund] is beginning to get most excited about is organoids — tiny 3D models of human tissues — which have the potential to change the way new drugs are tested.”
“They promise to replace large parts of animal testing with in‑vitro systems that behave more like real human organs, made tractable by automation and analytics, including AI.” 📰 Full Story →
Laser-assisted bioprinting technologies supporting new approach methodologies (NAMs)
Scintica Instrumentation Inc., News Medical Life Sciences, 5/18/2026
“New Approach Methodologies (NAMs) are being more widely adopted worldwide, prompting the dermo-cosmetics industry and pharmaceutical laboratories to actively seek robust, scalable, and human-relevant models rather than merely exploring alternatives to animal testing.”
“Bioprinting facilitates the fabrication of complex biological structures with precise spatial organization. Contrastingly, traditional two-dimensional cultures fail to replicate the in vivo spatial architecture of tissues found in the body. High-resolution laser induced forward transfer (LIFT) technology functions as a high-precision assembly of tissue models, effectively bridging this gap. Poietis’ Next Generation Bioprinting Systems (NGB-R™ ) have been designed and developed as a commercialized LIFT model.”
“[Laser-Assisted Bioprinting (LAB)] is dependent on LIFT technology” and ‘allows researchers to engineer highly complex tissues….” 📰 Full Story →
TheWell Bioscience Launches Universal Xeno-Free Organoid Medium to Standardize Workflows and Reduce Costs
PR Newswire, Morningstar, 5/19/2026
“TheWell Bioscience, a biotechnology company pioneering advanced 3D cell culture technologies, today announced the launch of its RocketCell™ Organoid Xeno-Free Essential-Core Medium, a chemically defined, universal foundation medium designed to streamline organoid culture workflows while enhancing reproducibility, scalability, and cost efficiency. As organoid models continue to expand across disease modeling, drug discovery, and precision medicine, researchers face challenges associated with complex media preparation, variability from undefined supplements, and fragmented workflows. Traditional approaches often rely on unstable conditional media or multiple specialized media which can increase both cost and experimental variability.”
“RocketCell™ Organoid Xeno-Free Essential-Core Medium is designed to address these challenges by providing a standardized, ready-to-use core ingredient for multiple types of organoids from different sources. This Essential-Core medium is flexible and can be customized by simply adding specific growth factors and signaling molecules to support a range of organoids in different differentiation stages. . . . ‘RocketCell™ Essential-Core Medium introduces a defined, universal foundation that simplifies culture workflows while supporting greater consistency and scalability, and aligns with the broader industry shift toward standardized, animal-free systems.’” 📰 Full Story →
US Startup Bexorg Revives Deceased Brains to Test Neurodegenerative Drugs
GaHyeon Jo, DongA Science, 5/21/2026
“An American biotech startup [Bexorg] has unveiled a technology [BrainEx] that restores partial function of a deceased person’s brain to test the effectiveness of new drugs. It is expected to provide clinical trial data in an environment more similar to the actual human brain than conventional animal testing, aiding the development of treatments for neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.”
“To date, Bexorg has analyzed more than 700 human brains using BrainEx. Unlike conventional cell cultures or animal experiments, this method allows for testing that reflects a real person’s genetic traits, environmental exposure history, and medication history, which is expected to yield data closely resembling actual human responses.”
“American pharmaceutical company ‘Biohaven’ has already conducted drug experiments using about 130 human brains with partially maintained function through BrainEx. . . . Biohaven is currently preparing for clinical trials of ‘BHV-8100’, a candidate drug for neurodegenerative diseases discovered using BrainEx data. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the application for the related clinical trial.” 📰 Full Story →
CuSTOM Accelerator Wins NIH Replication ‘Exemplar’ Prize
Magdalena Kasendra, Cincinnati Children’s, 5/20/2026
“Cincinnati Children’s CuSTOM Accelerator is one of 15 research labs nationwide to be named a Replication Exemplar in a national competition held by the National Institutes of Health Common Fund. The CuSTOM Accelerator, directed by Magdalena Kasendra, PhD, was recognized for its work advancing a human liver organoid platform as a New Approach Methodology (NAM) for predictive toxicology and translational medicine.”
“‘This recognition reinforces CuSTOM Accelerator’s leadership in advancing NAMs and demonstrates that complex human organoid systems can be translated into standardized, reproducible, scalable, and deployable solutions capable of supporting improved human-centered decision making,’ Kasendra says. . . . The CuSTOM Accelerator platform successfully reproduced clinically relevant hepatotoxicity signatures while substantially improving reproducibility, variance control, throughput, and scalability through implementation of standardized microcavity-guided organoid manufacturing, robotic liquid handling, automated imaging, and AI-enabled toxicity analysis. The platform now serves as foundational translational infrastructure within the CuSTOM Accelerator and is being leveraged across industry collaborations.” 📰 Full Story →
How Preclinical Models Are Failing Oncology—And Why Patient-Derived Organoids Might Finally Fix It
Georgina Davies speaking with Madhu Lal Nag, Technology Networks, 5/26/2026
“As oncology pipelines grow more complex and more personalized, drug developers are confronting an uncomfortable truth: preclinical models that have underpinned cancer research for decades often fail to predict how a drug will perform in real patients. The field’s reliance on a limited panel of animal model systems—most notably patient‑derived xenografts (PDXs) propagated in immunodeficient mice has contributed to a translational gap that obscures subpopulation effects and leads to drug candidates being deprioritized too early. . . Despite rapid innovation, oncology is being held back by a reliance on simplified animal systems.”
“To bridge the gap between the lab and the clinic, Dr. Lal‑Nag advocates for moving towards a tiered approach that ultimately involves going ‘straight to the patient resection’ (the biopsy). By using organoids and spheroids—3D models grown directly from human tumor tissue—researchers can preserve the natural heterogeneity required to identify how different subpopulations will respond to a drug.” 📰 Full Story →
Cerebral Organoids Revealed the Effects of Valproate on Early Brain Development
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Technology Networks, 5/26/2026
“It is known that the antiepileptic drug valproate increases the risk of developmental disorders in unborn children. A study conducted by the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), the Heidelberg Academy of Sciences and Humanities, the University of Tübingen, and the University Heidelberg using lab-grown tissue models of the human brain gives new insights into the effects this drug has on early brain development. . . . ‘We used lab-grown models of the human brain to investigate for the first time how the drug alters the extracellular matrix and how those alterations in turn affect processes within individual cells,’….”
“For their study, the researchers used cerebral organoids, i.e. three-dimensional tissue structures grown from human stem cells, which served as models representing different development stages of the prenatal brain. They exposed these organoids to valproate for 30 days to simulate continuous exposure during the early development stages. Then, the researchers investigated the impact of the medication on the tissue, cellular, and molecular levels.” 📰 Full Story →
Lab-grown brain-spinal cord model shows ‘irreversible’ nerve damage may be reversed
University of Cambridge, 5/28/2026
“Cambridge scientists have grown miniature circuits in the lab that mimic how the brain and spinal cord connect up, which underlies our movements. They used this model to show how damage to these connections previously considered ‘irreversible’ could, in fact, be reversible.”
“ . . . ‘Much of what we know about nerve regeneration comes from rodents, whose neurons behave differently from human neurons. Our sophisticated organoid models help bridge the knowledge gap from animal models to what we see in patients. They are also an important contribution to efforts to reduce the use of animals in research.’ 📰 Full Story →
Diabetes-Dementia Link Exploration in ‘Organ-On-Chip’ Project
American Medical Journal, 5/28/2026
“There is growing evidence to suggest a link between diabetes and dementia, however, previous research relying on animal models and cell cultures fail to fully capture the complexity of interactions between organs involved in diabetes and dementia. . . . This new grant allows clinicians, biologists, computer scientists and engineers to grow living human cells in specialised 3D structures to replicate complex cellular connections.”
“GlucoBrain aims to investigate the metabolic changes associated with the diabetes-dementia link. First, human organ interactions will be replicated using living cells grown within miniature biochips, with separate gut, pancreas, and brain chip modules eventually connecting into a multi-organ circuit. The system will then be used to monitor how glucose, hormones, and metabolic signals influence brain function and cognitive decline, as well as response to different drug treatments. Researchers will be able to study molecular communication in real time, capturing the complexity of interactions between organs in diabetes.” 📰 Full Story →