Laboratory-grown stem cells emit brain waves like newborns – and geniuses build a robot worm to sneak between the heads • The Register

Unhealthy spirit

An image of lumpy cortical organoid cells. Image credit: Muotri Lab / UCSD

Video Scientists have discovered for the first time that tiny brain cells grown in a petri dish can emit electrical waves similar to those of humans.

A group of researchers discovered this feature by deciding to track the growth of single pluripotent stem cells. These types of cells have the potential to turn into any type of cell or tissue in the body, whether in the lungs, heart or brain.

Stem cells grown in a laboratory at the University of California at San Diego (UCSD) have been encouraged to become cells of the cerebral cortex, explained Alysson Muotri, co-author of the research published in Cell, The register.

"We start with unique pluripotent stem cells and guide them to a neural fate by exposing them to specific factors. Then the cells self-organize and begin the maturation process, creating more links over time. "

Muotri, a professor in the Department of Pediatrics at UCSD, and his team saw brain cells grow into a small mass called "cortical organoids" for ten months. As they magnified, they realized, to their great surprise, that the cells were emitting signals resembling brain waves.

"There is no precedent for that in science. I was very skeptical at first, but after concluding that it was not an artifact, we began to believe it, "Muotri said.

This is the first time that these simple brain waves are detected in laboratory cells, but they have been detected in fetuses. "Five years ago, I would say that it would be impossible to detect these waves in an artificially created brain organoid and outside the uterus. Now, I think it's inevitable, "he added.

As cortical organoids matured, scientists noticed that the electrical tips emitted became more complex and triggered at different peaks and frequencies. However, they are not as electrically active as real, fully formed brains. Muotri said that organoids are more like brain signals generated by newborns.

It may be useful to study the neurological or psychological conditions present at the beginning of brain development. "We are now creating brain organelles from people with autism and epilepsy to find better treatments using this model," he said.

A magnetic robot worm wriggling in your brain

Just in case you need more reminder that the brain is a fascinating organ, here is new research. A group of engineers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology has developed a device similar to a black worm designed to navigate the complex meanders of the blood vessels of the brain.

You can see it squirming here.

Youtube video

"Stroke is the fifth leading cause of death and one of the leading causes of disability in the United States. If acute stroke treatment can be treated in the first approximately 90 minutes, the survival rate of patients could increase dramatically, "said Xuanhe Zhao, co-author of the paper published in Science Robotics and Associate Professor of Engineering mechanical and civil and environmental engineering. at MIT.

"If we could design a device to reverse the blockage of blood vessels during this" golden hour ", we could potentially avoid irreversible brain damage. It's our hope. "

It is essentially a thin wire covered with a hydrogel substance that can be directed with magnets. In the experiments, the apparatus was guided around an obstacle course composed of different tubes filled with liquid. Researchers hope to one day test their tool in real brains.

"Existing platforms could apply a magnetic field and perform the X-ray procedure at the same time for the patient, and the doctor could be in the next room, or even in a different city, controlling the magnetic field with a joystick Yoonho Kim said. a graduate student at MIT. "Our hope is to leverage existing technologies to test our robotic yarn in vivo in the next step." ®

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