Scientists make 3D 'organoids' mimicking lungs
UCLA researchers have created 3D lung-like tissues that mimic actual lungs in several ways, targeting drug-testing studies for pulmonary diseases including idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. The laboratory-grown 3D "organoids" have been created by coating hydrogel beads with lung-derived stem cells, allowing them to self-assemble into the shape of air sacs found in human lungs.