The Use of Human Tissues for Research: What Investigators Need to Know

While laboratory animals are necessary for some aspects of the development of biomedical advances, including those of precision medicine, human tissues are necessary to explore the findings and ensure that they are relevant to human systems. While many sources of human tissues exist, researchers, particularly those making the transition from animal to human systems, may not be aware of how best to find quality sources of human tissues or how best to use them in their research., In this article, we discuss the advantages of using human tissues in research. In addition, we highlight some of the major advances made possible by the use of human tissue, describe how human tissue is collected for research, the various types of bioresources that make human tissue available, and how investigators can find and use appropriate bioresources to support their research. The hope is that providing this information can help facilitate the transition from research on animals to research using human tissues as rapidly as practicable.