^TagBrain organoids

Neural networks of the human brain. 3d illustration of abstract nerve centers. Electrical impulses in brain. Bright full color

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post

Author
Heather Zeiger
Date
October 21, 2022

Categorized
Ethics, Neuroscience

Tagged
Brain organoids, Crakers (in MaddAddam Trilogy), Featured, Human brain organoid, Human brain organoid vs. fetal tissue, Human brain organoids (ethical issues), Human brain organoids (how used), MaddAddam Trilogy (2013), Margaret Atwood, Pigoons (in MaddAddam Trilogy)}

Rats with Human Brains? The Real Story About Brain Organoids

_{Human brain organoids use adult stem cells from volunteer donors; they bypass the use of fetal tissue from abortions} _{Heather Zeiger

October 21, 2022

8

Ethics, Neuroscience}

In Margaret Atwood’s MaddAddam Trilogy (2013) , the characters in the first book navigate a dystopian near-future with few ethical boundaries. Chicken has been genetically modified to be nothing more than meat and a mouth. For entertainment, they watch either pornography or televised executions. One of the central characters, the scientist who made the genetically engineered humans, ends up unleashing a synthetic pathogen intended to rid the world of evil. The excesses are reminiscent of Earth as described in the Flood narrative in the Bible (“Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and was full of violence.” Genesis 6:11). As in the Biblical account, a “flood” occurs when the synthetic pathogen ends up killing most of humanity. The remaining Read More ›

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post

Author
News
Date
June 27, 2021

Categorized
Neuroscience, Philosophy of Mind, Science

Tagged
Brain organoids, Cooking (and human brain), Fats (and human brain), Food processing (and human brain), Herbs (and human brain), Human brain (size), Mini-brains (brain organoids), Nuts (and human brain), Starches (and human brain)}

Do Larger Brains Make Us Human? Is That All?

_{Brain organoid studies suggest a “key genetic switch” that makes human brains grow larger than ape brains} _{News

June 27, 2021

5

Neuroscience, Philosophy of Mind, Science}

In a study of “mini-brains” (brain organoids), the size of a pea, grown in a dish and incapable of further development, researchers have discovered a “key genetic switch” that makes human brains grow three times larger than primate brains: This new research, published in the journal Cell, used brain organoids to show that this transition occurs more slowly in humans compared to gorillas and chimpanzees – over seven days, compared to five. The progenitor cells in human brain organoids not only retained their cylindrical shape for longer, but also split more frequently so more cells were produced. This was linked to a gene called ZEB2, which switches on sooner in gorilla brain organoids than in human. By delaying the effects Read More ›

Liquid Nitrogen bank containing suspension of stem cells. Cell culture for the biomedical diagnostic

^{Type
post

Author
Heather Zeiger
Date
November 1, 2020

Categorized
Ethics, Neuroscience, Philosophy of Mind

Tagged
brain, Brain organoids, Brains in a dish, Consciousness, Curt Siodmak, Featured, Materialism, mind, Naturalism, Orson Wells, Sentience}

Can We Make Brains in a Dish? Can We Make MINDS in a Dish?

_{Experiments with brain organoids have left many wondering whether we should be concerned about creating brains-in-a-dish} _{Heather Zeiger

November 1, 2020

8

Ethics, Neuroscience, Philosophy of Mind}

In a recent report, Nature addressed several studies on disembodied brains grown in the lab. One of those studies, published last year by Alysson Muotri of the University of California, San Diego, showed that brain organoids (organized clusters of brain cells) displayed electrical signals reminiscent of a twenty-five-week-old pre-term baby. the electrical activity continued for several months until the experiment was eventually stopped. Experiments with such brain organoids have left many wondering whether we should be concerned about creating brains-in-a-dish. Organoids, such as those made of kidney or liver cells, have been used to study drug development and disease. They are made either from embryonic stem cells—an ethically problematic source because they involve the destruction of an embryo—or induced pluripotent Read More ›