A research team developed BIPORES, a 2 mm polyethylene glycol scaffold that supports human neural stem cells as they form mature, brain-like tissue without animal-derived coatings. The porous, curved architecture—with silica nanoparticles and chemically modified PEG—encourages natural growth and longer-term studies. Compatible with patient-derived cells, BIPORES could enable personalized models for neurodegenerative disease research and reduce reliance on animal testing, though scaling-up remains a challenge.
New 2 mm 'BIPORES' Scaffold Lets Scientists Grow More Realistic Human Brain Tissue in the Lab
A research team developed BIPORES, a 2 mm polyethylene glycol scaffold that supports human neural stem cells as they form mature, brain-like tissue without animal-derived coatings. The porous, curved architecture—with silica nanoparticles and chemically modified PEG—encourages natural growth and longer-term studies. Compatible with patient-derived cells, BIPORES could enable personalized models for neurodegenerative disease research and reduce reliance on animal testing, though scaling-up remains a challenge.
12:56 PM, 11/19/2025Science
Researchers have developed a microscopic scaffold that brings laboratory-grown brain tissue closer to the real thing. The Bijel-Integrated PORous Engineered System (BIPORES) is a 2 mm (0.08 in) scaffold built mainly from chemically modified polyethylene glycol (PEG) and silica nanoparticles. Its curved, sponge-like network of interconnected pores supports attachment, growth and maturation of human neural stem cells without animal-derived coatings.
The team engineered the PEG to be cell-adhesive and re-shaped its structure to form a stable, porous matrix that encourages natural cell organization, expansion and intercellular communication. Because the material is stable and animal-free, it permits longer-term experiments and reduces variability caused by biological coatings.
"The material ensures cells get what they need to grow, organize, and communicate with each other in brain-like clusters," says Iman Noshadi, a bioengineer involved in the study.
Prince David Okoro, another bioengineer on the project, adds: "Since the engineered scaffold is stable, it permits longer-term studies. That's especially important as mature brain cells are more reflective of real tissue function when investigating diseases or traumas."
One major advantage of BIPORES is compatibility with human patient-derived cells. Neural stem cells made from a person’s blood or skin cells could be seeded onto the scaffold, enabling personalized "test neurons" that reflect an individual’s biology. This could improve research into neurodegenerative diseases, stroke and other brain injuries by revealing patient-specific responses to treatments.
Reducing dependence on animal brain models is both ethically desirable and scientifically important: human-like engineered tissues can yield findings more likely to translate to people. Challenges remain—most notably scaling the platform beyond its current 2 mm size and integrating multiple tissue types—but the researchers are optimistic the approach could be adapted to other organs, such as the liver, to study multi-organ interactions.
The work, led by researchers at the University of California, Riverside, is published in Advanced Functional Materials.