Human Liver Research Facility

The Human Liver Research Facility (HLRF) enables wider access to human liver materials for research purposes. Established in 2022, HLRF builds on a successful 10+ year collaboration between academic staff in the Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics and the Hepatobiliary Unit at Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (LUHFT). The HLRF is located in the Sherrington Building, five minutes away from the new Royal Liverpool Hospital building, where the Hepatobiliary Unit is now based.

Expertise

The HLRF team have expertise in the isolation and cryopreservation of primary human hepatocytes and culture of these cells in 2D and 3D platforms. Recently, expertise in precision-cut liver slices (PCLS) has also been established. In addition to supporting several successful funding applications, the HLRF has contributed to the publication of a number of peer-reviewed papers.

Services

The HLRF’s main objective is to widen access to human liver materials for research purposes. The facility offers the following materials, with the opportunity to donor-match cell and tissue types, amongst other project specific requirements:

Fresh primary human hepatocytes (2D/3D culture or in suspension)
Cryopreserved primary human hepatocytes (2D/3D culture or in vials)
Fresh (in suspension) and cryopreserved (in vials) non-parenchymal cells
Fresh human liver tissue (piece or as precision cut liver slice)
Flash-frozen human liver tissue
Blood*
Skin*

*Additional donor-matched samples available as per project requirement

All necessary ethical approvals and donor consent are in place. The HLRF can provide human liver materials to internal and external partners, in the academic, industry and commercial sectors. Please contact us for details of our pricing structure. In addition, the HLRF team has a wealth of experience in conducting human liver research, from experimental design all the way through to data analysis. We encourage you to get in touch to discuss your ideas and goals, to ensure the best fit of the materials and services offered by the facility.

Liver samples