New research could revolutionize the way Alzheimer's and other brain-related diseases are diagnosed and treated -- by building tiny brains in a petri dish.
"Never in our wildest dreams did we think that our crazy idea would work," he said."These could be used as a diagnostic tool, built from blood." In testing, Wenzel's"mini-brains" more accurately reflect a fully-fledged adult human brain, so they can be used to more closely examine neurological conditions of adult patients, such as Alzheimer disease.
If Wenzel and his colleagues can create a consistent way to diagnose and treat neurological conditions like Alzheimer's using only a small blood sample -- which has a relatively long shelf life and can be couriered -- instead of requiring patients to travel to hospitals or specialized clinics, it could be a tremendous resource savings for the healthcare system and a burden off of patients.
As an example, Wenzel pointed to the substantial wait times to see a psychiatrist in Saskatchewan. If the"mini-brains" could be used to test which antidepressant works best on a patient suffering from depression, it could dramatically reduce the time required to see a doctor and receive a prescription.
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