Hugh Duffy

Mr. Ippolito

AP Biology

3/7/2021

Kelly ServickFeb. 22, 2021, et al. “Brain Cell Clusters, Grown in Lab for More than a Year, Mirror 

Changes in a Newborn's Brain.” Science, 22 Feb. 2021, 

www.sciencemag.org/news/2021/02/brain-cell-clusters-grown-lab-more-year-mirror-chan

ges-newborn-s-brain. 

An organoid is an artificially grown gathering of cells which can take on the role of fetal organs. They are most commonly made from stem cells in petri dishes, but can grow to be the size of a baseball. In this particular experiment, researchers studied the development of a brain organoid. “The researchers exposed human stem cells to a specific set of growth-promoting nutrients to create spherical organoids containing neurons and other cell types found in the outer layers of the brain.” (Servick 1) They are essentially creating a live baby brain, without a fetal body. Since their discovery nearly a decade ago, these organoids have proven to be helpful in the study of mental disorders such as autism and schizophrenia. They have also been used in the study of Alzheimers, a disease to which we still have no cure. “Pașca’s team also looked at the expression of genes associated with brain disorders, including autism, schizophrenia, epilepsy, and Alzheimer’s disease.” (Servick 2) These organoids aren’t just clumps of cells. They display brain activity comparative to fetal brains, in some cases they can surpass the capabilities of post-birth human brains as well. As of now, scientists are still unsure as to how these organoids will help make advancements towards curing diseases of the brain, but these studies have been increasing in popularity, which shines hope for the future. 

I thought this article was well written, and there were seemingly no faults to it. The author, Kelly Servick, did a great job of summarizing the idea of what an organoid was. While she could have focused on the new studies regarding brain development and organoids, she first briefed the reader on the history of the experiments, and why they are so important. The only area to this article where I could suggest improvement was the length. It would have been exciting to read more about this topic, seeing how fascinating it was.