[Disease modeling using human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived microglia and region-specific neurons].

Neurodegenerative disorders including Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD) are hard to treat once they have suffered. Therefore, the establishment of new prevention and treatment methods for neurodegenerative disorders is an urgent issue for Japan's aging society, from the perspective of improving the quality of life of patients and medical staff involved in their care. Human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) have contributed to the understanding of the pathology of neurodegenerative diseases, and to the development of new preventive and therapeutic strategies based on the understanding of human diseases. Furthermore, new cross-disciplinary scientific trends together with iPSC technology are emerging in the fields of life science, medical science, and information technology. The fusion of various research knowledges and technologies may provide new scientific progress for better understanding of molecular mechanisms of pathology and the onset of neurodegenerative diseases. Here we have developed new brain model with hiPSC technology for the understanding of pathology of AD and PD based on the induction of region-specific brain organoids and microglia using hiPSCs. These brain organoids technology enables us to provide simpler and reproducible analytical methods by combining with not only developmental biology and pharmacology but also transcriptome analysis and direct conversion. These technological advantages contribute to the creation of new research fields with human brain research to understand higher brain functions and pathophysiology of neurodegenerative diseases such as AD and PD.