科学家成功在小鼠脑内植入人类脑细胞

斯坦福医学院研究团队取得重大突破，成功将人类脑细胞移植到小鼠大脑中，实现了迄今最广泛的人脑细胞在啮齿动物脑内的整合。3 研究人员通过基因工程删除小鼠大脑皮层的大部分，并用从人类皮肤细胞转化而来的脑类器官进行替换。46 这些人类细胞在小鼠脑内成功分化并与鼠脑神经回路整合，约六个月后开始呈现出与小鼠大脑外层相似的外观和功能。6 相关成果已发表在《自然》杂志上。15

这项研究为研究脑发育和神经系统疾病提供了新的工具。2 斯坦福大学教授Sergiu Pașca指出："精神病学的临床试验成功率是最低的之一，即使在动物模型中表现良好的药物在临床中也会失败。"6 研究团队认为该模型对癫痫、自闭症和脑瘫等复杂疾病的治疗具有潜在价值。6 行为测试表明这些混合脑小鼠的表现"与正常小鼠基本相同"，没有显示出认知增强。6 不过，这项研究也引发了伦理学家的关注。12 伦理审查专家Sarah Chan表示"没有迹象表明这些小鼠能像人类一样思考"。6

Researchers at Stanford University have successfully transplanted human brain cells derived from organoids into mice, creating what scientists describe as the most extensive integration of human neural tissue in rodent brains to date 36. The team genetically engineered mice to lack most of their cerebral cortex, then replaced the missing tissue with human brain organoid cells 46. After approximately six months, the human cells began to display appearance and function similar to the mouse brain's outer layer 6.

The research, published in the journal Nature 156, aims to provide improved animal models for studying brain development and neurological diseases 2. Human brain organoids have previously lacked key features of real organs, such as circulatory systems and immune cells 4, limitations that this integration approach may help address. According to Sergiu Pașca, the Stanford professor leading the research, clinical trials in psychiatry have among the lowest success rates, with drugs that perform well in animal models frequently failing in human patients 6. The team believes this chimeric brain model holds "revolutionary" potential for developing new drug testing platforms for complex conditions including epilepsy, autism, and cerebral palsy 6.

Behavioral testing indicated that mice with the hybrid brains performed essentially the same as normal mice, showing no cognitive enhancement 6. Ethics review expert Sarah Chan stated there is "no evidence" that these mice think like humans 6, addressing concerns some raised about the ethical implications of the work 12.