Long-Term Brain Organotypic Cultures of the Turquoise KillifishNothobranchius furzeri

Abstract

Organotypic culture is a well-established method for culturing ex vivo tissue samples. The advantages of culturing tissue slices for prolonged time periods ex vivo are numerous and consist primarily of the maintenance of the overall in vivo architecture of the isolated sample, the lack of the ematoencephalic barrier, and the ease of pharmacological treatments and interventions that can be conducted under controlled conditions as in in vitro systems such as cell cultures. Given the extremely short life span ofNothobranchius furzeriand the emergence of aging signs only after a few months of life, it is of particular interest to establish this protocol forN. furzerias a potential method to study brain aging ex vivo.