Creating pieces of brain tissue using stem cells

Associate Professor Mirella Dottori’s research lies within the field of human pluripotent stem cell biology, which is one of the most rapidly advancing areas of medical research. Pluripotent cells can now be generated from human biopsy tissue and this technology allows the possibility of generating patient-specific stem cells for the development of cell replacement as well as genetically appropriate human cellular models in vitro. For Triennial Voices, Associate Professor Dottori shares images of stem cell-derived brain organoids, which were generated by her PhD student, Cristiana Mattei, showing ‘hair-like’ cilia, which are found in the developing ear region of the brain. These studies are conducted in collaboration with Associate Professor Bryony Nayagam (Bionics Institute, University of Melbourne) and Dr Rebecca Lim (University of Newcastle).