Quantitative and Qualitative Analysis of Neurotransmitter and Neurosteroid Production in Cerebral Organoids during Differentiation

Authors: Sung Bum Park, Byumseok Koh, Hyun Soo Kwon, Young Eun Kim, Seong Soon Kim, Sung-Hee Cho, Tae-Young Kim, Myung Ae Bae, Dukjin Kang, Chul Hoon Kim and Ki Young Kim

ACS Chemical Neuroscience, 5 October 2023

Scientists use Axion’s next-generation Maestro MEA to evaluate the maturity and functionality of neural organoids in vitro.

Neurotransmitters and neurosteroids play key roles in neurophysiological activity. In this study, scientists use the Maestro microelectrode array (MEA) platform and other methods to analyze neurotransmitter and neurosteroid production in neural organoids in order to determine how they relate to organoid function and maturity throughout differentiation.

Overall, the multiomic approach demonstrated that “the expression levels of neurotransmitters and neurosteroids can serve as key factors in evaluating the maturity and functionality of human cerebral organoids”—findings the authors suggest could improve our understanding of diseases including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and schizophrenia, and may “lead to more accurate and reliable assessments of organoid quality, which could have important implications for drug discovery and development.”