Stanford Brain Organoids Program

The Stanford Brain Organoids Program was launched in 2018 as part of the Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute’s “Big Ideas in Neuroscience” initiative. The program brings together experts from various fields such as neuroscience, chemistry, and engineering to study neural circuits related to pain, genes associated with neurodevelopmental disorders, and new methods for studying brain connectivity.

Challenges in Organoid Production

The program faced the ongoing challenge of scaling up production. To deeply understand brain development, study neurodevelopmental disorders, or test potential treatments, researchers need to produce thousands of organoids that are uniform in size and shape. However, these delicate structures tend to stick together, making it difficult to grow large, consistent batches.

A team from the Wu Tsai Institute, including Sergiu Pasca and Sarah Heilshorn, led efforts to find a solution to this challenge. They unexpectedly discovered that using xanthan gum, a common food additive, prevents the organoids from sticking to each other.

Innovation in Organoid Production

The team can now easily produce 10,000 organoids, according to Pasca, the director of the Stanford Brain Organogenesis Program. This technique has already been shared with other laboratories to aid in their research.

Twelve years ago, Pasca developed a method to transform stem cells into three-dimensional tissues now known as regional neural organoids. At that time, he could only make a few of them.

However, Pasca’s larger goal was to discover how brain development is disrupted in conditions like autism or Timothy syndrome and to explore how drugs affect this development. To achieve this goal, Pasca realized he needed a diverse team of specialists.

The Adhesive Solution and Its Impact

After testing 23 different substances, the team found that xanthan gum prevents organoids from sticking together without any side effects on their development. This discovery helped keep the organoids separate and unbiased in experimental results.

The team used this technique to address a real-world problem: doctors are hesitant to prescribe medications to pregnant individuals or children due to uncertainty about their potential effects on the developing brain. Researchers conducted an experiment in which they added 298 FDA-approved drugs to batches of organoids to monitor their impact on growth.

Conclusion

The Stanford Brain Organoids Program has made a significant breakthrough in the study of brain development and neurological disorders. Thanks to the innovation of using xanthan gum, it is now possible to produce thousands of organoids and effectively test the effects of drugs. Researchers are now aiming to use this technique to study neuropsychiatric diseases such as autism, epilepsy, and schizophrenia, promising broader insights into the human brain and the development of new treatments.