Mini-Brains | Neuronetwork

What are mini-brains? 

Mini-brains, also known as brain organoids, are tiny, three-dimensional structures grown from stem cells in cell culture that mimic some features of a real brain.  

Why mini-brains? 

Mini-brains offer an alternative to 2D cell cultures and mouse models by better mimicking the brain’s complexity and providing a more accurate representation of human brain structure and function. Additionally, because organoids are derived from human cells, they capture the disease's genetic and molecular complexity in a way that animal models cannot. 

We are using mini-brains to replicate aspects of neurodegenerative diseases, aiming to investigate disease mechanisms and test therapeutic candidates more effectively. Mini brains are a unique and valuable tool for studying brain health and disease.  

Key areas: 

Improved framework 

To generate brain organoids, researchers often use Matrigel, a substance derived from mouse connective tissue, as a supportive environment for cells to grow and organize into a layered, complex 3D structure. However, the use of Matrigel has its drawbacks, such as its undefined composition, inconsistent quality across batches, and potential contamination by xenogenic materials, i.e., of animal sources. Therefore, we created a specialized framework called an engineered extracellular matrix, which is composed of human fibrillar fibronectin, a protein that organizes into elongated, thread-like shapes supported by a highly porous polymer scaffold. The use of our novel framework enhanced the growth of new neurons within brain organoids compared to previous matrices. These exciting results represent a major advance in neural engineering and offer improved models to study disease pathology.  

Patient-specific disease models 

We will use stem cells from patients to grow ALS, Alzheimer’s disease, and healthy mini-brains. This personalized research approach mimics patient-specific variations, will provide valuable insights into disease progression, and significantly reduce the time and resources needed to develop interventions and treatments for these devastating conditions.