Yes, you read that correctly. Scientists have indeed grown small brains, which are cellular structures that emit brain waves. To capture the neural activity, they were placed in a spider-like robot that was sent into space. These small brains are tiny cellular structures with specialized functions. They are called organelles. Organoids include ribosomes, chromosomes, mitochondria and other constituent parts of cells. In a laboratory at the University of California, scientists turned human skin cells into stem cells, and then made organelles develop like brain cells in embryos. Has the future come?
Why are organelles grown?
It all started six years ago. It was then that scientists first created a brain organoid from human skin cells. Today they are grown in laboratories around the world. This gives scientists the opportunity to take a fresh look at the earliest stages of human brain development.
Organoids, which are now in space, after all the manipulations carried out, turned into balls the size of a pinhead, each of which contains hundreds of thousands of cells of different types. Each of which, in turn, produces the same chemical and electrical signals as the cells in our brain.
NASA sent the organelles directly aboard the International Space Station to see how they evolve in zero gravity. They were placed in a metal box along with bags of nutrient broth. Experts believe that at this stage, organelles multiply incredibly quickly.
Organoid container.
But the most interesting thing is that scientists managed to record simple brain waves emanating from organelles. Brain waves are complex patterns of neural activity. They are created in the adult brain by synchronous networks of neurons. Specific brain patterns appear when we dream or remember.
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Scientists recorded the brain waves of these tiny brain organelles and also found that as they mature, the changes in the waves resemble those in the developing brains of premature babies. Do you think this raises a number of difficult ethical questions for researchers?
Brain transplant into a robot
The study's lead author, Dr. Priscilla Muotri and her colleagues, are testing various ways to stimulate organelles to develop more complex neural networks. In one experiment, they placed organelles in a small spider-shaped robot. The computer translated the electrical activity of the organoid into instructions, after receiving which, the small spider-like robot began to move its legs.
A robot in a UCLA laboratory that communicated with an organoid through a computer.
To understand that he was approaching a wall while moving, the robot used sensors to determine its location. The computer transmitted these signals to the organoid in the form of electrical impulses.
To date, scientists cannot yet say whether these experiments will affect the further development of organelles.
Secrets of the Human Brain
As you know, the brain is the most complex organ in the human body. Scientists are still wondering about many aspects of his work. And that's why organelles are so attractive - these relatively simple neural balls mimic some of the characteristics of a full-fledged brain. However, a new study published Thursday in the journal Cell suggests organelles may be more complex than previously thought.
The findings could be a sign that scientists are approaching the ability to generate at least partially conscious life in the laboratory. If so, neuroscientists will have to face a serious ethical dilemma - continuing to experiment could mean creating and destroying a self-conscious, human-like life.
Many scientists are skeptical about such assumptions, but the author of the study urges his colleagues to think carefully about what they might create, albeit unintentionally. Do you think organelles are conscious?
Lyubov Sokovikova
