Brain organoids

Develop theory for neuronal and metabolic activity in brain organoids, including sleep–wake behaviour, in the J. M. Schwarz Theory Group. Research connects physical learning and multiscale mechanics with experimental observations, collaborating with Orly Reiner and Yaakov Nahmias. The role includes student mentoring and an on-campus research presence. The initial appointment is one year with a possible second year. The employer lists the position as open until filled; the earlier priority-review date has passed.

Brain organoids and other non-animal models offer ways to investigate brain development and disease and evaluate candidate therapies. Their wider use depends on addressing variability in organoid generation, reagents, culture conditions and analysis, alongside the demands of complex workflows when increasing experimental throughput. Ali Strtak and Fikri Birey discuss how to improve consistency between organoids and experiments. The session examines reagent and vendor variation, ways to simplify multistep procedures, suitable controls and analytical methods, and emerging culture, automation an

This Nature Podcast episode examines human brain organoids transplanted into mice lacking a cerebral cortex, where extensive cellular integration could create an in-vivo platform for testing therapies and studying human neurobiology. It also covers research highlights and Paper2Agent, an AI system that turns research papers into interactive virtual corresponding authors able to answer questions and support complex scientific tasks.

…conditions, and examine human brain organoids that have remained viable for more than five years. The episode connects sleep medicine, therapeutic neuroscience, and long-term models of human brain development.

Brain organoids represent a promising technology in neurosciences, due to their capability of resembling salient human brain structural and functional features in vitro. For this reason, they are successfully employed for gaining hitherto insights in human brain. Several brain pathologies – among all, Parkinson’s Disease - are linked to metabolic alterations. However, the ground truth for measuring metabolism in vitro - i.e., platforms such as the Seahorse Analyzer - monitors nutrient consumption at a bulk level, without locally mapping concentration changes. This approach cannot provide an ex

…delivering the signal generated in the brain. Insults to this system, such as spinal cord injuries or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, cause dysfunction and degeneration of motor neurons leading to severe and untreatable pathological conditions. We aim to explore t

…by the progressive degeneration of midbrain dopamine neurons. Current treatments mainly rely on pharmacotherapy, which seems to provide beneficial effects only in the very early stages of the disease. Having an in vitro source of mature midbrain dopamine neurons from patients is paramount to initially reproduce disease phenotypes and subsequently identify disease-modifying drug candidates. In this context, three-dimensional (3D) induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived brain organoids play an important role, as they mim

…Brain organoids are emerging as attractive tools for studying brain development and disease modeling and recently they acquired great attention for they potential use in regenerative medicine. Cerebral organoids are three-dimensional in vitro structures generated by exploiting the intrinsic self-aggregation

Brain organoid technology is a pivotal tool for exploring human brain physiology and diseases. Despite its potential, current readout capabilities constrain brain organoid electrophysiological research. Classical microelectrode arrays (MEA) fall short in capturing data from intact organoids, which may flatten in the 2D-MEA surface, jeopardizing physiological responses and data validity. To overcome this, we pioneered a mesh MEA, preventing morphological deformations, fostering 3D growth, and facilitating electrical activity recording within intact organoids over an extended period. Electrophys

Organoids derived from human stem cells present enormous potential to investigate aspects of human brain development. In this study, we hypothesised that brain organoids represent a suitable method for studying the shift in GABAergic transmission, from excitatory to inhibitory, during development. As several anaesthetics act via GABA receptors, we aimed to investigate how the anaesthetic propofol, known to be a GABA-A receptor agonist, may affect neuronal transmission in cerebral brain organoids at different developmental stages. Organoids cultivated from human embryonic stem cells (H1-ESC), w

…from 2D and 3D neuronal cultures and brain slices. MEA recordings serve as powerful functional assay for neuroscience, but this is only applicable if it does not outstrip our ability to analyze the data. Here we present the MEASpikeR package, an R toolbox specifically designed for analyzing and exploring in vitro neuronal spike activity and field post synaptic potential (fPSP) recorded with the MED64 system (AlphaMED Scientific). Methods MEASpikeR consist

…fail to accurately replicate human brain development and patholog

…to the non-parenchymal brain cells. Meninges host neural stem/precursor cells with neuronal differentiation potential and are emerging as injury-induced site in many neurodegenerative diseases. To study the involvement of meninges in GLD pathogen

…induced pluripotent stem cell derived brain organoids recapitulate early cellular and molecular mechanisms of brain development. Because they lack spatial organization to fully mimic the in vivo topographical organization, we introduce a new method to model early neural tube patterning by exposing organoids to continuous gradients within a five-chamber mesofluidic device. We hypothesized that the introduction of oriented signaling ce

…characterized by rapid disruption of brain blood flow, and it can cause irreversible damage to brain cells leading to permanent disability or death. Currently, treatment options are limited and fail to completely prevent or reverse brain damage. It is therefore essential to pursue innovative approaches to improve the prognosis and quality of life of ischemic stroke patients.Brain organoids are three-dimensional models that can reproduce the cellular composition, structure, and neuronal connec

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is a highly aggressive brain tumor that has a poor prognosis due to tumor recurrence and lack of effective treatment options. In order to address this challenge, we developed a novel 3D in vitro model of GBM that incorporates a co-culture of human iPSC-derived brain organoids with patient-derived GBM cells and its tumor microenvironment components. This system enables the investigation of mechanisms that lead to chemotherapy resistance and facilitates the detection of potential therapeutic agents for GBM. To establish this model, we genetically engineered patient

Thyroid hormone (T3) plays a critical role during early brain and overall central nervous system (CNS) development, and it acts as a major regulator of CNS metabolism and mitochondrial activity.Mutations in the T3 specific receptor monocarboxylate transporter 8 (MCT8) lead to hypothyroidism condition as tough in the Allan Herndon Dudley Syndrome (AHDS), which is characterized by neurodevelopmental defects.We set up a brain organoid model resembling AHDS pathological scenario to study the neurodevelopmental defects and to screen new metabolic target to restore neuronal maturation.AHDS organoids

…gene-driven approaches for modeling brain diseases have failed to capture the diverse and convergent mechanisms at play. Centrosomes and cilia act as intermediaries between environmental and intrinsic signals, regulating cellular behavior. Mutations or dosage variations disrupting their function have been linked to brain formation deficits,

…cultures of patient-derived neurons, brain organoids are increasingly being employed to explore genetic DEE mechanisms. We are applying this approach to understand PMSE (Polyhydramnios,

…far identified in human patients with brain malformations only partially recapitulate the expected phenotypes and therefore do not provide reliable models to entirely understand the molecular and cellular mechanisms responsible for these disorders. Hence, we combine the in vivo mouse model and the human brain organoids in order to better comprehend the mechanisms involved in the migration of neurons during human development and tackle the cause