Three-dimensional cell culture model for hepatocytes opens a new avenue of real world research on liver

3-demensional (3D) culture model is a valuable in vitro tool to study liver biology, metabolism, organogenesis, tissue morphology, drug discovery and cell-based assays. Compelling evidence suggests that cells cultured in 3D model exhibit superior liver-specific functions over the conventional 2-dimentional (2D) culture in evaluating hepatobiliary drug disposition and drug-induced hepatotoxicity due to the in vivo-like physiological condition recapitulated by 3D model technologies. We will review the attributes of 3D culture model in acquiring relevant liver phenotypes and functionalities, discuss the critical niche factors found to modulate hepatocytes and highlight recent advancements on 3D cell culture technologies to achieve next-level in vitro tool for preclinical study.