ReviewPost screenImmune-competent human skin disease models

- Skin disease drug development requires immune-competent in vitro human models.
- Skin disease examples: fibrosis, autoimmune, psoriasis, cancer and contact allergy.
- Current animal and in vitro methods incorporating human immunology.
- Skin-on-chip technology enables next-generation human immune-competent skin models.
- Induced pluripotent stem cells could be key for personalized medicine.

All skin diseases have an underlying immune component. Owing to differences in animal and human immunology, the majority of drugs fail in the preclinical or clinical testing phases. Therefore animal alternative methods that incorporate human immunology into in vitro skin disease models are required to move the field forward. This review summarizes the progress, using examples from fibrosis, autoimmune diseases, psoriasis, cancer and contact allergy. The emphasis is on co-cultures and 3D organotypic models. Our conclusion is that current models are inadequate and future developments with immune-competent skin-on-chip models based on induced pluripotent stem cells could provide a next generation of skin models for drug discovery and testing.