This MRFF funded project will utilise cohorts of human induced pluripotent stem cell lines (hIPSC) derived from drug-responsive and drug-resistant epilepsy patients established across the two epilepsy research nodes (The University of Queensland and Monash University) and build on our collective expertise in generating hIPSC-derived brain organoids. We will also integrate our expertise in artificial intelligence models to further advance the algorithm.
We will use hiPSC-derived brain organoids and screen a library of approved drugs to identify those able to alter neural activity in a patient-specific model, train an artificial intelligence model that leverages both clinical and genomic data to assist drug selection, and validate treatment predictions in real-world clinical settings.
Demonstrating the utility of an epilepsy patient-specific in-vitro drug screening platform in combination with decision-making software offers substantive health benefits for patients, provides neurologists with an evidence-based medicine approach, reduces health care costs and has the potential to enable transformative new insights into the genetic drivers of epilepsy and drug-resistance, to inform new therapy development.
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