NIH Launches First National Organoid Development Center to Minimize Use of Animal Testing
The new SOM Center aims to standardize organoid research, advancing human-based models and reducing animal testing in biomedical science.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has announced the launch of the Standardized Organoid Modeling (SOM) Center, the first national resource dedicated to developing standardized protocols for organoid research to reduce reliance on animal models. Funded with $87 million in contracts over the first three years, the center will be housed at the Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research (FNLCR), supported by the NIH’s National Cancer Institute (NCI).
This follows the April 2025 announcement by the FDA that they were phasing out animal testing.
The NIH says that the SOM Center will use advanced technologies, including artificial intelligence, robotics, and various human cell sources, to create reproducible and patient-centered organoid models. Organoids are lab-grown tissue models that mimic the structure and function of human organs, providing alternatives to animal research models. Currently, most organoids are produced through trial and error in academic settings, which limits reproducibility and scalability across laboratories.
According to NIH Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, “This groundbreaking initiative will transform how we conduct biomedical research through innovative approaches to advancing human-based technologies. By creating standardized, reproducible, and accessible organoid models, we will accelerate drug discovery and translational science, offering more precise tools for disease modeling, public health protection, and reducing reliance on animal models.”
The NIH reports that the SOM Center is intended to support a broad group of users including scientists, researchers, clinicians, industry partners, and educators. The center will provide open access to protocols, data, and organoids, promoting collaboration globally. In addition, it will work with regulatory bodies such as the FDA to ensure that new organoid models meet preclinical testing standards.
Initially, the SOM Center will focus on organoid models for the liver, lung, heart, and intestine, with plans to expand to additional organ systems and disease-specific models in the future.
Nicole Kleinstreuer, Ph.D., Acting NIH Deputy Director for Program Coordination, Planning, and Strategic Initiatives, said, “The NIH SOM Center is truly a first of its kind. It will serve as a national resource to scientists at NIH and investigators from around the country and the world, offering a unique combination of AI and machine learning to develop world-class organoid protocols, advanced robotics for large-scale production, and open-access repositories for physical samples and digital resources.”
A new SOM Scientific Advisory Board, comprised of internationally recognized scientists, will provide guidance on scientific priorities and research directions for the center.
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