What happens when human brain tissue is implanted into rats
It can feel things, direct the animal’s behaviour, and also shed light on disease
Simplify, simplify. Henry David Thoreau’s maxim is one which scientists generally take to heart when investigating complex natural phenomena. And there is no known natural phenomenon more complex than the human brain. Since 2011, therefore, Sergiu Pasca of Stanford University, who studies it, has been doing just that. His simplified models are structures called cortical organoids. They are spheres a few millimetres across, composed of specially grown human nerve cells, which act as simulacra of brain tissue.
This article appeared in the Science & technology section of the print edition under the headline “Fiat lux”
Science & technology October 15th 2022
From the October 15th 2022 edition
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