Human organoids for Risk Group 4 virus research: a new frontier in investigating Nipah virus infection of the central nervous system
Advanced development of medical countermeasures against Risk Group 4 viruses, such as the Nipah virus, historically required testing in mammals under the FDA Animal Rule and translation of data to inform clinical trials in humans. Because the application of human organoids in research on viruses pathogenic for humans is conspecific, it bears the potential to reduce, refine, or replace animal studies where unnecessary. Human cerebral organoids are three-dimensional cell aggregates that resemble the developing human brain functionally and structurally. Brain organoids may be valuable in investigating the replication, neuroinvasion, pathogenesis, virulence, and persistence of neurotropic viruses and provide scientific discernment when developing medical countermeasures destined for the human end-user.
Authors
- Amanda M.W. Hischak (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8798-7714)
- Jens H. Kuhn (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7800-6045)
- Lina Widerspick (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6666-7770)
- Shuǐqìng Yú (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9473-566X)
- John G. Bernbaum (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1529-8191)
- Daniel B. Woodburn (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4936-2742)
- Ian Crozier (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2485-4011)
- Jillian Geiger (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3537-3945)
- Songelí Menezes Freire (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6547-6884)
- Gabriella Worwa (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7485-2204)
- Julie P. Tran
- César Muñoz‐Fontela (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7725-2586)
- Bapi Pahar (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1949-973X)
- Louis Huzella (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2913-489X)
- Gustavo Palacios (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5062-1938)
- Nicole Kleinstreuer (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7914-3682)
- Jeremy J. Bearss (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4280-5670)
Institutions
- National Institutes of Health (US)
- German Center for Infection Research (DE)
- Division of Program Coordination Planning and Strategic Initiatives (US)
- Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research (US)
- National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (US)
- Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (DE)
- Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (US)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Journal of Virology
- Published
- 2025-10-29
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1128/jvi.01070-25
- Primary Topic
- Virology and Viral Diseases
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00