The human brain may have been built from two ancient systems.
Stanford researchers found the forebrain/midbrain and hindbrain arise from distinct progenitor cell populations — and used that insight to grow functional human hindbrain motor neurons in the lab.
TWO ORIGINS. ONE BRAIN.
A Nature Neuroscience study found the forebrain/midbrain and hindbrain trace back to distinct early progenitor-cell populations, and the team used that insight to generate functional human hindbrain motor neurons from stem cells.
WHAT HAPPENED
A Nature Neuroscience study published on September 18 found that the forebrain/midbrain and hindbrain trace back to distinct early progenitor-cell populations rather than one shared developmental origin.
The team then used that developmental insight to generate functional human hindbrain motor neurons from pluripotent stem cells, creating a laboratory model that may help researchers study disorders affecting the brain stem, including SMA and ALS.
This is basic research and a new lab model. It is not a treatment or a cure.
WHY THIS IS HOPESLOP
A basic-development discovery solved a long-standing lab problem and gives researchers a new way to study cells that are otherwise extraordinarily hard to obtain from living patients.
ORIGINAL SOURCEStanford MedicineRead the original report
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