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Recently, researchers from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) demonstrated in Nature Neuroscience, a subsidiary of Nature, brain organoids cultured from human stem cells, providing powerful research tools for neurological diseases that affect brain function
These three-dimensional structures similar to the real human brain have complex neural activities similar to those of the real human brain, and can also reproduce the neuroelectric activity patterns that are hallmarks of certain brain diseases
In the past ten years or so, scientists have mastered methods to remove skin or blood cells from the human body, induce them to become pluripotent stem cells (iPSC), and then guide these cells to transform into any type of human cell, including neurons
However, the challenge of simulating the human brain is particularly great
▲The brain organoids under the microscope show layered tissue structures and different types of cells (picture source: reference [2]; Credit: UCLA Broad Stem Cell Research Center/Nature Neuroscience)
Moreover, when healthy human brain cells respond to stimulation, they will not only send out electric signals, but also produce neural oscillations, that is, brain waves formed by the simultaneous firing of neuron groups
Do brain organoids have enough neural network complexity to simulate these functions? In this study, the scientists gave answers
After cultivating brain organoids from healthy human skin cells, the researchers used probes to record extracellularly, and used calcium imaging technology to detect the electrical activity of nerve cells.
Next, the research team used cells from patients with Rett syndrome to develop brain organoids
After the researchers used induced pluripotent stem cells from patients with Rett syndrome to further cultivate brain organoids, they also observed highly abnormal neural oscillations and epileptic-like activities
Researchers applied an experimental treatment drug pifithrin-alpha to these brain organoids that mimic Rett syndrome, and found that it can normalize the neural activity of the organoids and disappear the activity pattern related to epilepsy
Note: The original text has been deleted
Reference materials:
[1] Samarasinghe, RA, Miranda, OA, Buth, JE et al.
[2] Scientists develop brain organoids with complex neural activity.