The world's first 3D brain identical to a human brain is about to be available
Scientists at Tufts University (USA) have made a leap forward by being able to completely manufacture a human brain in the laboratory. Developing a 3D brain model identical to the human brain from human neurons will be a better opportunity to study abnormal brain cells in patients with Parkinson's, Alzheimer's...
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The technique uses a three-dimensional scaffold of functional neural tissue that has been grown in the lab for years. The researchers used human induced pluripotent stem cells, or iPSCs, from a variety of sources to create “brain-like organoids.” The study was published in the journal ACS Materials Science and Bioengineering.
"We found the right conditions for iPSCs to differentiate into several different neural subtypes, as well as astrocytes that support developing neural networks," said David Kaplan from Tufts University.
Once these neurons were created, they were then grown on scaffolds made from silk protein and collagen, allowing researchers to visualize the behavior of individual cells.
The Tufts University research has important implications for scientists as they could use cells from patients with Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease and other diseases to study and find new treatment options.
“The development of neural networks was maintained and consistent in the 3D tissue models, whether we used cells from individual subjects or healthy cells from patients with Alzheimer's or Parkinson's disease,” said William Cantley, author of the study.
Given the challenges in studying abnormal human neural networks, finding ways to analyze brain cells grown in as natural an environment as possible is crucial to research.
“That gives us a reliable platform to study different diseases and the ability to observe what happens to cells over a long period of time,” Cantley added.
