Fig. 1

Human fetal organotypic brain slice cultures maintain brain tissue architecture and viability for at least 14 days in culture. A Schematic representation of the human fetal organotypic brain slice (hfOBSC) cultivation platform. Slices of 350-µm thick were cut from human fetal brain tissue (17–20 weeks of gestation) and cultured in a transwell system containing serum-free culture medium for over 14 days in a CO₂ incubator at 37 °C. B Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) assay showing limited cell death in human brain slices at the indicated days (1–14) of culture. Data are presented as mean absorbance ± SD of three independent subjects, including LDH levels of lysed slices as positive control (CTRL) indicative for maximum cell death. C Immunohistochemistry staining (brown color) on longitudinal sections of hfOBSC slices at days 3, 7, or 14 of culture using antibodies specific to astrocyte marker GFAP, neuron marker MAP2, microglia marker Iba1 or oligodendrocyte marker Olig2. Images are representative of two independent subjects and show stainings of consecutive longitudinal tissue sections obtained from three levels of the cultured hfOBSC (i.e. apical, middle and basal level of the brain slice). Scale bar: 100 µm