In a landmark shift for drug development and ethical research, on April 10, 2025, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced its plan to phase out the longstanding requirement for animal testing in the approval process of certain drugs, including monoclonal antibodies, due to growing concerns over the ethical implications, time, cost, and scientific limitations of animal testing.
This move is not only a win for animal welfare, but also a strategic boost for innovation. Among the most promising alternatives is “organ-on-a-chip” — miniaturized systems that replicate the structure and function of human organs using human cells. These chips can mimic complex interactions in the body much more accurately than traditional animal models. The hope is that technologies like this can accelerate development timelines, reduce costs, and deliver more reliable predictions of how drugs will actually perform in humans.
Dynamic42, a German biotech firm, is a standout in this space. Their organ-on-a-chip platform enables researchers to test drugs and study disease mechanisms using real human tissue environments. These chips offer dynamic flow conditions and can model multiple organ systems, providing powerful insights into drug responses, toxicity, and disease pathology — all without a single lab animal.
Ohio Lumex is excited to announce that we now are the exclusive U.S. and Canada distributor of Dynamic42 products. This partnership makes it significantly easier for pharmaceutical companies, universities, and biotech startups in North America to adopt this innovative technology and align with the FDA’s forward-looking vision. We believe that our collaboration will help support the transition, providing researchers with accessible, next-gen tools that align with evolving regulatory and ethical expectations.
For those interested in learning more about organ-on-a-chip, the video below explains how it works in more detail.
