Now, a team of Japanese researchers has developed a mini brain that shows not only the complex three-dimensional structure of the cerebral cortex, but also coordinated neural activity, according to Physics World. The development suggests doctors will be able to better study neurological conditions without needing to slice any human brains.

Biomimicry

The mini brains were grown from cultured pluripotent stem cells – cells taken from an adult that can then become any type of cell. After growing a clump of the brain cells, the team separated them and placed them individually into a petri dish, where they automatically formed neural networks among themselves, according to research published in the journal Stem Cell Reports on Thursday. That is to say, the cells organized themselves into a structure resembling the cerebral cortex.