Relatively recent developments in scientific technology and thought have allowed for the creation of neural organoids, induced pluripotent stem cell-derived 3-D cultures that allow scientists to mimic brain organization and development in vitro. While these "mini brains" are far less complex than the human brain, they offer new opportunities to study disorders such as schizophrenia and autism, along with infections like Zika virus which can cause major neural defects in developing brains.
In a paper published on August 29, 2019, researchers from the Muotri Lab illustrated that these in vitro organoids could produce brain waves that appear strikingly similar to those produced by pre-term infants. Due to their findings, researchers from the Muotri lab have concluded that an additional use for organoids is in studying network formation during early human brain development.
The Muotri Lab is pushing their research further by coaxing microglia into organoids with the idea that the macrophage-derivatives will enable the brain mass to mature further. Other research into developing brain organoids has attempted to provide the cultures with information from introduced sensory cells to better mimic the external cues the brain receives in an in vivo model. A 2017 Nature paper studied the effects of introducing retina cells to the organoid and found that this stimulation could induce photosensitivity in the culture.
The rapid advances being made in organoid models are fascinating and particularly useful for researchers studying complex neural disorders and diseases. However, the continued success of organoid development has people discussing ethics problems that may arise in attempting to attain sentience in a lab culture.