title: Generation of cerebral organoids from human pluripotent stem cells.
abstract: Human brain development exhibits several unique aspects, such as increased complexity and expansion of neuronal output, that have proven difficult to study in model organisms. As a result, in vitro approaches to model human brain development and disease are an intense area of research. Here we describe a recently established protocol for generating 3D brain tissue, so-called cerebral organoids, which closely mimics the endogenous developmental program. This method can easily be implemented in a standard tissue culture room and can give rise to developing cerebral cortex, ventral telencephalon, choroid plexus and retinal identities, among others, within 1-2 months. This straightforward protocol can be applied to developmental studies, as well as to the study of a variety of human brain diseases. Furthermore, as organoids can be maintained for more than 1 year in long-term culture, they also have the potential to model later events such as neuronal maturation and survival.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Molecular Biotechnology of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (IMBA), Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Madeline A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Lancaster
authors.affiliation: Institute of Molecular Biotechnology of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (IMBA), Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Juergen A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Knoblich
mesh_terms: D001921:Brain / Q000166:cytology / Q000254:growth & development*; D006801:Humans; D046569:Neuroepithelial Cells / Q000502:physiology; D009940:Organoids / Q000254:growth & development*; D039904:Pluripotent Stem Cells; D013997:Time Factors; D046509:Tissue Culture Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*