Provided herein are novel organoid culture media, organoid culture systems, and methods of culturing tumor organoids using the subject organoid culture media. Also provided herein are tumor organoids developed using such organoid culture systems, methods for assessing the clonal diversity of the tumor organoids, and methods for using such tumor organoids, for example, for tumor modelling and drug development applications. In particular embodiments, the tumor organoid culture media provided herein is substantially free of R-spondins (e.g., R-spondin1).

A method for producing a mammalian milk like product, for example a human milk like product comprising generating lactocytes derived from mammalian induced pluripotent stem cells (miPSC), for example human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC), and expressing the mammalian milk like product, for example the human milk like product from lactocytes.

The disclosure relates to a method of producing bankable and subculturable mature microglia, and according to a method according to an aspect, subculture and banking are possible, and freeze storage and thawing are also possible, and thus, it is possible to simply isolate and use only mature microglia whenever necessary. In addition, it is possible to dramatically reduce the number of subjects required for an experiment, and therefore, the method may contribute economically to all research or industrial fields related to microglia.

A pharmaceutical or food composition including alverine, 4-hydroxy alverine, a derivative thereof, or a salt thereof and their uses are disclosed. The composition is useful for preventing, alleviating, or treating muscular weakness-related diseases. When myoblasts are treated with the alverine, 4-hydroxy alverine, derivative thereof, or salt thereof, differentiation into myotubes is promoted. Therefore, the alverine, 4-hydroxy alverine, derivative thereof, or salt thereof can be effectively used in the promotion of differentiation of myoblasts and the prevention, alleviation, or treatment of muscular weakness-related diseases.

A method for screening for target cells, a corresponding test kit and a use thereof, a method for screening cells, and a biological culture chip and a preparation method therefor and a use thereof. The method for screening target cells comprises: culturing said candidate single cells within a culture chamber provided with a signal screening layer, the signal screening layer comprising signal molecules for specific recognition of target molecules; on the basis of signals of the signal molecules, selecting target cells suitable for secreting the target molecules. The method for screening cells comprises: arranging candidate cells in a culture chamber to form target antibody-antigen-signal antibody complexes; on the basis of signals of signal molecules connected to the signal antibodies, determining whether the candidate cells are target cells. The biological culture chip comprises a matrix (100), and a biological culture space arranged on the surface of the matrix (100) and used for culturing biological cells.

A method for generating a population of cardiomyocytes from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) in an integrated process. The method may comprise seeding the iPSCs on a modified surface of a modified cell culture substrate, culturing the seeded iPSCs on the modified surface of the modified cell culture substrate in an animal component-free culture medium, and differentiating the cultured iPSCs to the population of cardiomyocytes on the modified surface of the modified cell culture substrate. The modified cell culture substrate may comprise a patterned polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) substrate, a first coating comprising a plurality of polydopamine molecules, and a second coating comprising a plurality of Laminin 511 E8 Fragment (LME8) molecules.

Methods for derivation, culture, and maturation of small hepatic progenitor cells are described.

The present invention chiefly aims to provide a new differentiation inducing agent (peptide) that can solve the previous problems in inducing differentiation of pluripotent stem cells such as ES/iPS cells into somatic cells (e.g., cardiomyocytes).

The present invention can include, for example, a synthetic peptide having, in the molecular structure thereof, an amino acid sequence represented by the following (SEQ ID NO: 1), or an amino acid sequence formed by substitution, deletion and/or addition of one or several amino acid residues in the amino acid sequence. It can also include, for example, a composition for inducing differentiation of pluripotent stem cells into somatic cells, comprising said synthetic peptide.

TABLE-US-00001 (SEQ ID No. 1) C A X X L X X L X X X L X X L X G X X X X X X X X X X X X X X L X X X L X X L X X A C                                                                  • • • 

Among the various aspects of the present disclosure is the provision of engineered cells, animal models, and uses thereof for modeling low grade glioma (LGG). An aspect of the present disclosure provides for a population of cells engineered to silence, downregulate, knock out, or reduce or knock down Cxcl10 expression. Another aspect of the present disclosure provides for an animal engineered to be deficient in Cxcl10, downregulate or reduce expression of Cxcl10, knock out Cxcl10, or knock down Cxcl10 (e.g., Cxcl10.sup.−/− mice). Yet another aspect of the present disclosure provides for a method of growing tumor cell lines or patient-derived xenografts for LGG tumors in an animal (e.g., mouse, rat) including providing a mouse or rat harboring somatic homozygous deletion in the Rag1 or Cxcl10 gene, and implanting an amount of the cells in mice sufficient to grow a tumor.

A method for inducing differentiation into pancreatic α cells includes: a step (a) of culturing endodermal cells, which have been induced to differentiate from pluripotent stem cells, in the presence of a bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) signaling inhibitor, and retinoic acid or a retinoic acid analog to induce differentiation into primitive gut tube (PGT) cells; a step (b) of culturing the primitive gut tube (PGT) cells to induce differentiation into pancreatic endocrine precursor (EP) cells; and a step (c) of culturing the pancreatic endocrine precursor (EP) cells to induce differentiation into pancreatic α cells, in which the step (b) and the step (c) are performed in the absence of ascorbic acid.