MONTRÉAL, February 3rd, 2026 – A team from the Centre de recherche Azrieli du CHU Sainte-Justine has achieved a major milestone by creating a functional three-dimensional (3D) heart tissue that can beat autonomously in vitro and that incorporates micro-sensors enabling fine, real-time analysis of its contractile properties. This advancement marks an important step forward for modeling human cardiac diseases and conducting preclinical drug testing.
Led by researcher Houman Savoji and PhD student Ali Mousavi, the study was recently published in the scientific journal Small.
Measuring heart mechanics from the cellular to the tissue scale
Often referred to as “hearts-on-a-chip,” these engineered heart tissues are produced using 3D bioprinting with a custom bio-ink developed in Houman Savoji’s laboratory at CHU Sainte-Justine. This bio-ink can integrate stem cells derived from a patient, enabling the creation of personalized human heart models. A first version of this innovation was presented in 2024.
The major innovation of this study lies in the direct integration of ultra-soft, biocompatible and fluorescent mechanical sensors within the heart tissue itself. These sensors allow for unprecedented precision in measuring the contractile forces generated at both the cellular level and across the entire tissue, using non-destructive optical methods.
Unlike existing “heart-on-a-chip” platforms—often limited in their ability to capture localized forces within dynamic 3D tissues—this approach delivers high‑resolution, real‑time mechanical data. It therefore more accurately reflects the complexity of human myocardium, the muscle responsible for cardiac contraction.
The authors also measured calcium activity within the tissues, visualizing in real time the calcium waves that trigger each heartbeat. They further demonstrated that their “hearts-on-a-chip” respond to drugs just like real cardiac tissues, confirming the model’s sensitivity for pharmacological screening.
A powerful tool for research and drug development
The team is now working to develop models of cardiovascular diseases such as dilated cardiomyopathy and some arrhythmias, by comparing tissues derived from the cells of patients living with these conditions to tissues generated from those of healthy individuals. Ultimately, this technology could enable the modeling of a wide range of cardiac disorders and the precise assessment of potential therapies.
“The ability to observe the tissue’s response to different compounds in real time represents a major advantage for preclinical development and translational research,” explains first author Ali Mousavi. “This allows us to test directly on a patient’s own cells, without any invasive procedures.”
“This breakthrough brings us even closer to true precision health, by giving us the ability to identify the most effective medication for each person before treatment is even administered,” concludes principal investigator Houman Savoji.