Modelling neurodegenerative disease using brain organoids

Abstract

Neurodegenerative Diseases such as Alzheimer's Disease represent a major public health challenge, with no disease modifying therapies available. The availability of induced pluripotent stem cells from patients with phenotypes and genotypes of interest, that can be subsequently differentiated in vitro into disease-affected cell types, has revolutionised our ability to generate physiologically relevant disease models. The recent availability of brain organoids - self-organising in vitro tissue models - as enabled the generation of complex, multicellular systems to study brain development and disease. Although widely used for modelling neurodevelopment, early studies have demonstrated great promise in the use of organoids as models of neurodegenerative disease. Here, I will review recent progress to model neurodegenerative diseases using organoids and comment on future directions and challenges.

Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease; Induced pluripotent stem cells; Microglia; Neurodegeneration; Organoids.