KU Leuven - University of Leuven 3 articles published in JoVE Developmental Biology Establishing Organoids from Human Tooth as a Powerful Tool Toward Mechanistic Research and Regenerative Therapy Lara Hemeryck1, Ivo Lambrichts2, Annelies Bronckaers2, Hugo Vankelecom1 1Laboratory of Tissue Plasticity in Health and Disease, Cluster of Stem Cell and Developmental Biology, Department of Development and Regeneration, Leuven Stem Cell Institute, KU Leuven (University of Leuven), 2Biomedical Research Institute (BIOMED), UHasselt, Hasselt University We present a protocol to develop epithelial organoid cultures starting from human tooth. The organoids are robustly expandable and recapitulate the tooth's epithelial stem cells, including their ameloblast differentiation capacity. The unique organoid model provides a promising tool to study human dental (stem cell) biology with perspectives for tooth-regenerative approaches. Developmental Biology Development of Organoids from Mouse Pituitary as In Vitro Model to Explore Pituitary Stem Cell Biology Emma Laporte*1, Charlotte Nys*1, Hugo Vankelecom1 1Laboratory of Tissue Plasticity in Health and Disease, Cluster of Stem Cell and Developmental Biology, Department of Development and Regeneration, Leuven Stem Cell Institute, KU Leuven (University of Leuven) The pituitary gland is the key regulator of the body's endocrine system. This article describes the development of organoids from the mouse pituitary as a novel 3D in vitro model to study the gland's stem cell population of which the biology and function remain poorly understood. Neuroscience Generation of Human Motor Units with Functional Neuromuscular Junctions in Microfluidic Devices Katarina Stoklund Dittlau1,2, Emily N. Krasnow1,2, Laura Fumagalli1,2, Tijs Vandoorne1,2, Pieter Baatsen3,4, Axelle Kerstens3,4, Giorgia Giacomazzi5, Benjamin Pavie3,4, Elisabeth Rossaert1,2, Jimmy Beckers1,2, Maurilio Sampaolesi5, Philip Van Damme1,2,6, Ludo Van Den Bosch1,2 1Department of Neurosciences, Experimental Neurology, and Leuven Brain Institute, KU Leuven - University of Leuven, 2VIB Center for Brain & Disease Research, Laboratory of Neurobiology, , 3VIB Center for Brain & Disease Research, Research Group Molecular Neurobiology, , 4VIB Bio Imaging Core, KU Leuven - University of Leuven, 5Department of Development and Regeneration, Stem Cell and Developmental Biology, KU Leuven - University of Leuven, 6Department of Neurology, University Hospitals Leuven We describe a method to generate human motor units in commercially available microfluidic devices by co-culturing human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived motor neurons with human primary mesoangioblast-derived myotubes resulting in the formation of functionally active neuromuscular junctions.
