Researchers at the University of Cambridge created the first synthetic mouse embryos from stem cells without eggs or sperm. They mimicked the natural embryonic development process by inducing gene expression in three types of stem cells - embryonic stem cells, extraembryonic stem cells that form the placenta, and those that form the yolk sac. The stem cells self-organized and communicated with each other, developing structures resembling a brain, heart, and other organs. This technique could help understand why pregnancies fail and prevent it, generate entire brains, and open new possibilities for studying neuronal development and genetic effects on brain formation. Researchers believe this could eventually allow testing new drugs, growing synthetic organs for transplants, and manipulating genes to understand development.

1. Presented by,
D.Ragavi
M.Sc.,Biochemistry
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2. Synthetic Embryo
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3. Introduction
• The Researchers - University of Cambridge created model embryos from mouse
stem cells
• Team led by Professor Magdalena Zernicka-Goetz – develop embryo without eggs
or sperm
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4. • Scientists mimicked natural processes in lab- used three types of stem cells
• By inducing the expression of a particular set of genes
• Establishing environment for their interactions – stem cell talk to each other
The stem cells self- organized into structures
Embryo
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6. Embryos in glass
• Zernicka-Goetz’s team - technique developed by Jacob Hanna, a stem-cell
biologist , Israel
• Hanna’s team - device - culturing natural mouse embryos - outside the uterus
• Incubator, kept the embryos - in which the embryos reside - rotate on a Ferris-
wheel-like system
• Adds ventilation - controls the pressure - mixture of oxygen and carbon dioxide
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8. How they do ?
• Embryonic stem cells cultured indefinitely
• Addition to Embryonic cells , two kind of Extraembryonic stem cells used
(i) forms placenta
(ii) yolk sac
• Find environment for 3 types of distinct cells can grow and communicate with
each other
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9. What are they found ?
• Brain , heart , other organ
• Extraembryonic cells signal to embryonic ells – chemically , mechanically
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10. • Understand why many pregnancies fail , how to prevent it
• Looked dialogue between stem cells , how it occur and how it go
wrong
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11. • Ability to generate entire brain ( anterior part ) – major goal
• Open new possibility – neuronal development – demonstrate the proof
– by knocking out known gene
• Essential for
(i) formation of neural tube
(ii)precursor of nervous system
(iii)for brain and eye development
• Absence of gene – show known defect in brain development
• Apply to many genes with unknown function in brain development
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12. Uses
Researchers see important uses for the future;
• To test new drugs
• Build synthetic organs for people who need transplants
• Understand pregnancy fail
• This accessibility allows to manipulate genes
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13. The key to our achievement was thinking
outside the conventional box
“ follow your heart desire”
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