From Amyloid Exposure to Genetic Causality: Converging hiPSC-Based Models of Alzheimer’s Disease
5 affiliations
- 1Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", 00133 Rome, Italy.
- 2Department of Biology, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", 00133 Rome, Italy.
- 3Department of Science, University Roma Tre, 00146 Rome, Italy.
- 4LIFE Institute for Research and Health Care-Santa Lucia IRCCS, 00179 Rome, Italy.
- 5Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX 77550, USA.
Abstract
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder in which genetic susceptibility, aging, protein aggregation, and neuroglial dysfunction converge to drive progressive neuronal loss. Although animal models and conventional cell systems have provided fundamental insights into pathomechanisms, they only partially reproduce the human-specific and multifactorial nature of AD. Human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC)-based models have emerged as a powerful platform to investigate disease-relevant processes within a patient-specific genetic background while enabling the generation of multiple neural cell types and multicellular systems. In this review, we present the evolution of hiPSC-based AD modeling, from reductionist paradigms based on exogenous amyloid-β exposure to CRISPR-engineered isogenic models addressing causal mutations and genetic risk variants associated with either familial or sporadic forms. We examine the contribution of three-dimensional brain organoids and neuroglial co-culture systems in recapitulating cell–cell interactions, neuroinflammatory responses, and tissue-level pathological processes. We focus on current challenges, including the limited representation of neuronal aging, variability among organoids, and the need for standardized protocols. Finally, we discuss the translational potential of hiPSC-derived systems for target identification, drug discovery, and regenerative medicine. Collectively, these advances position hiPSC-based platforms as essential complementary models for elucidating AD pathogenesis and accelerating the development of precision therapeutic strategies.
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BibTeX
@article{colasuonno2026from,
title = {{From Amyloid Exposure to Genetic Causality: Converging hiPSC-Based Models of Alzheimer’s Disease}},
author = {Fiorella Colasuonno and Alessio Valenza and Federica Rossin and Sandra Moreno},
journal = {Cells},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.3390/cells15191793},
url = {https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4409/15/19/1793},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - From Amyloid Exposure to Genetic Causality: Converging hiPSC-Based Models of Alzheimer’s Disease
AU - Fiorella Colasuonno
AU - Alessio Valenza
AU - Federica Rossin
AU - Sandra Moreno
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/30
JO - Cells
DO - 10.3390/cells15191793
UR - https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4409/15/19/1793
AB - Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder in which genetic susceptibility, aging, protein aggregation, and neuroglial dysfunction converge to drive progressive neuronal loss. Although animal models and conventional cell systems have provided fundamental insights into pathomechanisms, they only partially reproduce the human-specific and multifactorial nature of AD. Human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC)-based models have emerged as a powerful platform to investigate disease-relevant processes within a patient-specific genetic background while enabling the generation of multiple neural cell types and multicellular systems. In this review, we present the evolution of hiPSC-based AD modeling, from reductionist paradigms based on exogenous amyloid-β exposure to CRISPR-engineered isogenic models addressing causal mutations and genetic risk variants associated with either familial or sporadic forms. We examine the contribution of three-dimensional brain organoids and neuroglial co-culture systems in recapitulating cell–cell interactions, neuroinflammatory responses, and tissue-level pathological processes. We focus on current challenges, including the limited representation of neuronal aging, variability among organoids, and the need for standardized protocols. Finally, we discuss the translational potential of hiPSC-derived systems for target identification, drug discovery, and regenerative medicine. Collectively, these advances position hiPSC-based platforms as essential complementary models for elucidating AD pathogenesis and accelerating the development of precision therapeutic strategies.
SN - 2073-4409
ER -