DIFFERENTIATION OF MULTIPLE STEM CELLS TO FORM RENAL ORGANOIDS

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for producing renal organoids comprising nephrons, urethral buds, and blood vessels and / or progenitors thereof. In one embodiment, the methods comprise contacting intermediate mesoderm cells with: fibroblast growth factor 9 and / or fibroblast growth factor 20 and / or fibroblast growth factor 2 and optionally one or more selected from the group consisting of: bone morphogenetic protein 7; heparin; a wnt agonist; retinoic acid; and a ra antagonist under conditions favoring the formation of vascularized renal organoids.Another embodiment involves the production of mesodermal cells by sequentially contacting pluripotent stem cells with a wnt agonist and fibroblast growth factor 9 and / or fibroblast growth factor 20 and / or fibroblast growth factor 2, followed by a relatively short re-exposure to the wnt agonist. Renal organoids may have end uses such as kidney repair and regeneration, reprinting of kidneys or their functional components, renal cell networks, and screening compounds for nephrotoxicity.