A visual analysis of international research on the ethics of human organoids from 2016 to 2024
10.12026/j.issn.1001-8565.2025.11.04
- VernacularTitle:2016—2024年人源类器官伦理国际研究的可视化分析
- Author:
Huiyu LUO
1
;
Yajun LUO
2
;
Yingshi TAO
3
Author Information
1. Key Laboratory of Bioethics and Science and Technology Governance， Henan Medical University， Xinxiang 453003， China
2. School of Medical Humanities， Henan Medical University， Xinxiang 453003， China
3. School of Marxism， Hunan University， Changsha 410082， China
- Publication Type:Journal Article
- Keywords:
ethics of human organoid;
science and technology ethics;
moral status;
ethical governance
- From:
Chinese Medical Ethics
2025;38(11):1398-1408
- CountryChina
- Language:Chinese
-
Abstract:
With the rapid advancement of science and technology， human organoid technology has demonstrated immense potential in medical research and treatment， but it has also raised complex ethical issues. Ethical research on human organoid has gradually become a hot field of concern in the international academic community. Taking 262 papers from the Web of Science core database from 2016 to 2024 as a sample， this paper employed bibliometrics and visualization methods to analyze the hotspots and evolutionary trends of international research on the ethics of human organoid. The results showed that international research on the ethics of human organoid exhibited a significant growth trend， going through three phases： a slow accumulation period， a sustained explosion period， and a circuitous growth period. The primary research forces were concentrated in the United States， China， the United Kingdom， and Italy， with China gradually emerging in this domain. The research hotspots were mainly focused on the following aspects. The first was the research of classical ethical issues， encompassing an overview of the overall ethical issues in the research and application of human organoid technology， and the ethical issues of organoid biobanks. The second was the new challenges in ethical issues， including the moral status and ethical governance of brain organoids， embryoid bodies， and gonadal organoids. The third was ethical issues arising from cross-disciplinary applications， covering the ethical challenges posed by chimeras formed through transplanting human brain organoid into non-human animals and hybrids created by connecting human brain organoid with artificial intelligence （AI）， robots， and other non-biological entities. As technology continues to advance， the complexity and importance of ethical issues related to human organoid will persistently increase， and research in this field will continue to deepen and expand in the future.
