Human neurons transplanted into rats to help study brain disorders

Groundbreaking research could throw light on how cells from patients with neuropsychiatric disorders malfunction

Researchers have transplanted human neurons into rat brains in work that aims to shed fresh light on debilitating neurological and psychiatric disorders such as epilepsy and schizophrenia.

The clumps of human cells took root inside the animal brains, hooked up to their blood supplies and tapped into rat brain circuits, allowing them to sense whisker movements and change how the animals behaved.