Scientists at Johns Hopkins Medicine have found new evidence that small clusters of brain tissue grown from the cells of people with Alzheimer's disease could help researchers predict how different patients may respond to medications used to manage psychiatric symptoms linked to the condition.
The findings add to growing evidence that these miniature brain models could eventually help scientists develop and select more precise treatments for specific groups of people with Alzheimer's disease.
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The Johns Hopkins researchers studied miniature models of the hindbrain, a region at the back of the skull that helps control essential functions such as breathing, sleep and heart rate.
Turning Patient Blood Cells Into Brain Tissue The researchers began with blood samples collected with permission from people with Alzheimer's disease at the NIH-funded Johns Hopkins Alzheimer's Disease Research Center.
Credit: Machairaki lab Scientists from Johns Hopkins Medicine report new evidence that clusters of brain tissue derived from the cells of patients with Alzheimer's disease may be used to evaluate how certain patients with the neurodegenerative condition may respond to drugs commonly prescribed to treat psychiatric symptoms of the disorder.
Credit: Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine The Johns Hopkins team set out to analyze mini-models of the hindbrain, the brain's command center in the back of the skull that regulates vital functions including breathing, sleep and heart rate.
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From blood samples collected with permission from patients with Alzheimer's disease at the Johns Hopkins Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, the scientists coaxed blood cells to turn back their internal clocks to become induced pluripotent stem cells, which can turn into any cell type within the body.
DOI: 10.1002/alz.71273 Journal information: Alzheimer's & Dementia Clinical categories Neurology Provided by Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Who's behind this story?