Research in the Bielas lab is aimed at understanding the epigenetic and molecular mechanisms of stem cell multipotency, self-renewal and neurogenesis required to build a brain. We develop these project from our human genetic studies aimed at identifying the genetic basis of neurodevelopmental disorders. A major challenge to investigating cell and molecular mechanisms of neurodevelopmental disorders has been the lack of affected tissue. To address this problem we use human brain organoid cultures, differentiated from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) and transgenic mice as model systems. Our goal is to elucidate the pathology of clinically important neurological disorders and novel features of human brain development.