Although the adult brain is an immune-privileged organ, both increases in immune activation and loss of immune cell types have devastating effects on the development and later function of the human brain. How immune cells influence the temporal development of neural cells is only beginning to be elucidated. Recent studies highlight a variety of non-neural cell types that are present in the cortical stem cell niche during neurogenesis. To decipher the influence that immune populations have on neural development, we utilize organoid co-culture model systems to investigate their cellular interactions and the consequences on differentiation and lineage trajectory decisions.
