The research landscape is changing—and researchers should be preparing now
Regulatory agencies and major research funding organizations are increasingly encouraging the development and use of new, human-relevant research methodologies that can improve the predictability, efficiency, and translation of preclinical research into human outcomes. For researchers, this shift represents more than a change in regulatory expectations. It is an opportunity to develop better research strategies today that can produce more meaningful results tomorrow.
Organizations such as the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and ARPA-H’s TIGAR program are supporting innovative, higher-risk, higher-reward approaches designed to accelerate scientific discovery and deliver real-world impact. NIH is supporting research across a broad range of disciplines, including advanced experimental approaches, AI, and innovative study design, while ARPA-H TIGAR is focused on developing and scaling technologies for biopreservation—an area directly relevant to organ donation and transplantation.
For researchers, the implication is important: now is the time to consider how human-relevant models can become part of your research strategy—not after traditional approaches have failed to translate.
Moving Beyond Models That May Not Fully Predict Human Outcomes
Cell-based and animal-based models remain valuable tools in biomedical research. However, biological differences between experimental models and humans can make it difficult to predict how a discovery will ultimately perform in patients.
Researchers increasingly have access to approaches designed to address this challenge, including organoids, advanced cell systems, computational models, microphysiological systems, and other New Approach Methodologies (NAMs).
One particularly powerful opportunity is the ability to study viable, metabolically active human organs and tissues.
Put Human Biology at the Center of Your Research
What better way to investigate human biology than to work with human biology itself?
IIAM provides researchers with donated, non-transplanted human organs and tissues for medical research. These organs are viable and metabolically active, giving investigators an opportunity to study human tissue in ways that can complement traditional models and advanced research methodologies.
Incorporating human organs and tissues into research can help generate data that is more directly relevant to human physiology and disease—potentially providing a more efficient path toward findings that can translate to patients.
For researchers preparing for the future of biomedical research, human tissue should be considered not simply as an additional research resource, but as an important component of a strategy focused on human-relevant and translatable results.
The Right Human Tissue Can Make the Difference
Access to human tissue is only part of the equation. Access to the right tissue for the research question is critical.
IIAM can work with researchers to identify and source organs and tissues based on specific study requirements, including medical history, disease state, age, and other relevant donor characteristics.
This ability to match tissue to research objectives can help investigators design studies that more closely reflect the population or disease they are studying—and potentially further improve the relevance of their findings.
Start Building Human-Relevant Research Into Your Next Grant
Human tissue access can also be an important consideration during the grant process. Reviewers want confidence that investigators can obtain the resources necessary to successfully execute their proposed studies.
IIAM can provide letters of support for grant applications, demonstrating the ability to source appropriate human organs and tissues for proposed research.
Establishing this resource early can help researchers address a potential bottleneck before it becomes a problem and demonstrate a well-developed plan for incorporating human tissue into their research.
The movement toward more human-relevant, translatable research is already underway. Researchers who begin incorporating these approaches now can position their programs to take advantage of evolving funding priorities, regulatory expectations, and scientific opportunities.
IIAM can help you take that step
Whether you are developing a new grant proposal, exploring a New Approach Methodology, or looking for human organs and tissues for an existing study, IIAM can help you access the human biological resources needed to advance your research.