Growing neurons on a flat petri dish is a great way to study the inner workings of nerve signals in the brain. But I think it’s safe to argue that a two-dimensional lawn of cells doesn’t capture all the complexity of our intricate, cauliflower-shaped brains. Then again, cracking open the skulls of living patients is also not a viable path for fully understanding the molecular basis of brain disorders.

Brain organoids (two white balls) growing in petri dish.
Image: Pasca Lab, Stanford University.

The recent emergence of stem cell-derived mini-brains, or brain organoids, as a research tool is bridging this impasse. With induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) derived from a readily-accessible skin sample from patients, it’s possible to generate three-dimensional balls of cells that mimic particular parts of the brain’s anatomy. These mini-brains have the expected type of neurons, as well as other cells that support neuron function. We’ve written many blogs, most recently in January, on the applications of this cutting-edge tool.

With any new technology, there is always room for improvement. One thing that most mini-brains lack is their own system of blood vessels, or vasculature. That’s where Dr. Ben Waldau, a vascular neurosurgeon at UC Davis Medical Center, and his lab come into the picture. Last week, their published work in NeuroReport showed that incorporating blood vessels into a brain organoid is possible.

A stained cross-section of a brain organoid showing that blood vessels (in red) have penetrated both the outer, more organized layers and the inner core. Image: UC Davis Institute for Regenerative Cures

Using iPSCs from one patient, the Waldau team separately generated brain organoids and blood vessels cells, also called endothelial cells. After growing each for about a month, the organoids were embedded in a gelatin containing the endothelial cells. In an excellent Wired article, writer Megan Molteni explains what happened next:

“After incubating for three weeks, they took a single organoid and transplanted it into a tiny cavity carefully carved into a mouse’s brain. Two weeks later the organoid was alive, well—and, critically, had grown capillaries that penetrated all the way to its inner layers.”

Every tissue relies on nutrients and oxygen from the blood. As Molteni suggests, being able to incorporate blood vessels and brain organoids from the same patient’s cells may make it possible to grow and study even more complex brain structures without the need of a mouse using fluidic pumps.

As Waldau explains in the Wired article, this vascularized brain organoid system also adds promise to the ultimate goal of repairing damaged brain tissue:

Ben Waldau

“The whole idea with these organoids is to one day be able to develop a brain structure the patient has lost made with the patient’s own cells. We see the injuries still there on the CT scans, but there’s nothing we can do. So many of them are left behind with permanent neural deficits—paralysis, numbness, weakness—even after surgery and physical therapy.”