An artificial brain produced in a laboratory may seem like pure science fiction, but a Japanese-French research team has already developed a technology to link brain-like tissue produced in a laboratory. In a study in Nature Communications Journal Compare its structure with the circuits in the human brain.
Laboratory cultivation of brain cells
Researchers at the Institute of Industrial Science at the University of Tokyo have established physiological connections between tissues of experimental models in which human stem cells grow into 3D brain-like structures. Improved development and activity can be observed in these “brain organoids.” “In individual neural organoids grown under laboratory conditions, the cells show relatively little electrical activity,” said study co-author Tomoya Doenki. press release. “When we connected two neuronal organelles to axon bundles, we were able to see how these bidirectional connections helped create and synchronize patterns of activity between the organelles, which bore some resemblance to connections between two brain regions.”
Connected brain organoids showed more complex activity than single organelles or those connected using previous techniques. Axon beam communications appear to be of similar importance to the development of complex networks. In the human brain, it is responsible for many basic functions such as language, attention, and emotions.
In vitro research as an alternative to animal testing
“It is a challenge to investigate the precise mechanisms of brain development and function,” the scientists explain in the letter. “Animal studies are limited by species differences in brain structure and function, and laboratory-grown brain cells typically lack the distinct connections to cells in the human brain.”
It is therefore important to learn more about neural connections and the circuits they create. In this way, the researchers hope they can improve and study their organs. It is interesting to see how advanced networks evolve and change over time under different conditions. In the long term, this should lead to improved treatments for neuropsychiatric diseases.
Image source: Institute of Industrial Science, University of Tokyo
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