Corey Landry 

BMED PhD Thesis Proposal Presentation 

Date: 12/17/2020 

Time: 4-6 PM 

Location: BlueJeans (https://bluejeans.com/149465846) 

Faculty Advisor: 

Dr. Craig Forest 

Committee Members: 

Dr. Zhexing Wen (Emory University) 

Dr. Matt Rowan (Emory University) 

Dr. Alysson Muotri (UCSD) 

Dr. Yong Zhang (PKU) 

Dr. Bilal Haider (GT) 

Title: Methods for high throughput single cell analysis throughout intact human brain organoids 

Abstract: Understanding how the neurons of the human brain communicate and connect in development and disease is a foundational goal of neuroscience. Human brain organoids, three dimensional spheres of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) have provided a model system that may be able to recreate certain aspects of the developing human brain. Patch clamp recordings represent a gold standard method for measuring neuronal communication at the single cell level, but current methods for patch clamp experiments in human brain organoids are limited for two reasons. First, current techniques lack the throughput and scalability necessary for large scale organoid studies. Second, current techniques rely on acute slice methods, which may damage neurons in an unpredictable way and bias results.  Specifically, the aims of this proposal are (1) develop a method for enzymatic cleaning and reuse of patch pipettes, (2) demonstrate patch clamp recordings in intact human brain organoids, and (3) characterize methods of molecular delivery to subsurface organoid neurons. These methods will provide a set of tools for characterization of individual neurons in intact human brain organoids that can be optimized and scaled to meet the needs of this rapidly growing field of neuroscience.