Abstract
Human brain organoids, generated from pluripotent stem cells, have emerged as a promising technique for modeling early stages of human neurodevelopment in controlled laboratory conditions. Although the applications for disease modeling in a dish have become routine, the use of these brain organoids as evolutionary tools is only now getting momentum. Here, we will review the current state of the art on the use of brain organoids from different species and the molecular and cellular insights generated from these studies. Besides, we will discuss how this model might be beneficial for human health and the limitations and future perspectives of this technology.
Highlights
What is it that makes us uniquely human? Among several features of our species, perhaps the most impactful characteristic consists of our sophisticated brains and all the abilities and advanced lifestyles we all enjoy
Humans and other primates can be distinguished by AIDS progression[60], malaria vulnerability[61], Alzheimer’s disease[62], and susceptibility to certain cancers[63] as well as other differences[64,65]
The identification and characterization of the cellular and molecular mechanism that distinguishes humans from our closest relatives at early stages of embryogenesis and in specific types of cells are likely to become a new resource for evolutionary studies[66]
Summary
What is it that makes us uniquely human? Among several features of our species, perhaps the most impactful characteristic consists of our sophisticated brains and all the abilities and advanced lifestyles we all enjoy. The fact that brain organoids can be generated from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs)[23,24], reprogrammed from somatic cells of any species, offered an unprecedented opportunity to compare early stages of human neurodevelopment with those of other primates, including our closest NHP relatives: the chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and bonobos (Pan paniscus)[25,26,27]. The identification and characterization of the cellular and molecular mechanism that distinguishes humans from our closest relatives at early stages of embryogenesis and in specific types of cells are likely to become a new resource for evolutionary studies[66] In this context, recent advances in iPSC-derived neural progenitor cells and brain organoids are an attractive tool to dissect cellular and molecular events that contribute to the uniqueness of the human brain. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript
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