Scientists Grow Human Brain Tissue in 3-D Culture System


Scientists Grow Human Brain Tissue in 3-D Culture System

TERHAN (Tasnim) – A group of Austrian scientists successfully developed a complex human brain tissue in a three-dimensional culture system in laboratory.

The method described in the current issue of Nature allows pluripotent stem cells to develop into cerebral organoids -- or "mini brains" -- that consist of several discrete brain regions. Instead of using so-called patterning growth factors to achieve this, scientists at the Institute of Molecular Biotechnology (IMBA) of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (OeAW) fine-tuned growth conditions and provided a conducive environment. As a result, intrinsic cues from the stem cells guided the development towards different interdependent brain tissues.

Using the "mini brains," the scientists were also able to model the development of a human neuronal disorder and identify its origin -- opening up routes to long hoped-for model systems of the human brain.

The development of the human brain remains one of the greatest mysteries in biology. Derived from a simple tissue, it develops into the most complex natural structure known to man. Studies of the human brain's development and associated human disorders are extremely difficult, as no scientist has thus far successfully established a three-dimensional culture model of the developing brain as a whole.

Now, a research group lead by Dr. Jurgen Knoblich at the Institute of Molecular Biotechnology of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (IMBA) has just changed that. Starting with established human embryonic stem cell lines and induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells, the group identified growth conditions that aided the differentiation of the stem cells into several brain tissues. While using media for neuronal induction and differentiation, the group was able to avoid the use of patterning growth factor conditions, which are usually applied in order to generate specific cell identities from stem cells.

"We modified an established approach to generate so-called neuroectoderm, a cell layer from which the nervous system derives. Fragments of this tissue were then maintained in a 3D-culture and embedded in droplets of a specific gel that provided a scaffold for complex tissue growth. In order to enhance nutrient absorption, we later transferred the gel droplets to a spinning bioreactor. Within three to four weeks defined brain regions were formed," Dr. Knoblich explained.

The new method also offers great potential for establishing model systems for human brain disorders. Such models are urgently needed, as the commonly used animal models are of considerably lower complexity, and often do not adequately recapitulate the human disease.

 

 

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