Organoids/organs-on-a-chip: new frontiers of intestinal pathophysiological models

Organoids/organs-on-a-chip open up new frontiers for basic and clinical research of intestinal diseases. Species-specific differences hinder research on animal models, while organoids are emerging as powerful tools due to self-organization from stem cells and the reproduction of the functional properties in vivo. Organs-on-a-chip is also accelerating the process of faithfully mimicking the intestinal microenvironment. And by combining organoids and organ-on-a-chip technologies, they further are expected to serve as innovative preclinical tools and could outperform traditional cell culture models or animal models in the future. Above all, organoids/organs-on-a-chip with other strategies like genome editing, 3D printing, and organoid biobanks contribute to modeling intestinal homeostasis and disease. Here, the current challenges and future trends in intestinal pathophysiological models will be summarized.