In a first of its kind in research, the miniature of human brains was grown in the skulls of mice. This breakthrough could help in the stem cell research as well as provide more insight into the cure of neurological disorders. Scientists created pin-sized human brains from stem cells and then placed them inside the skulls of mice by removing a piece of tissue to make room for the new organ. The organ was grafted into the blood-vessel-rich area with the mouse brain.

The graft organ integrated into the host environment and within two weeks the rodents’ implants had been successfully received and were even spawning new neurons. Scientists exactly saw how the human brain cells developed in the time. The brain implants survived for an average of 233 days, and grew alongside the mice brain cells. “We could see the human cells taking over the whole space,” lead researcher Steven Goldman told New Scientist. “It seemed like the mouse counterparts were fleeing to the margins.”

After the implants, cognitive performance of these mice was also observed. It was found that those with regular mice brains were smarter than those with human brain cells. Since the research is still very recent, how the human brain cells will be affected is not yet clear. Scientists although are very hopeful that the new research will largely help in cure of neurological disorders, in the sense, the grafted brain can be used to repair injured parts in a patient's brain or also to replace areas that do not work properly. The paper has been published in detail in the journal Nature Biotechnology. Scientists will now look into developing more sophisticated organoid models. These will receive sufficient oxygen and other nutrients. With the first study going well and positive results, the further research will only prove to be a breakthrough in the field of medicine.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 20, 2018 03:08 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).