The widely anticipated NSW Organoid Innovation Centre, which includes a key site at Children’s Medical Research Institute, has been officially opened by NSW Chief Scientist Professor Hugh Durrant-Whyte.

The first of its kind in Australia, the centre was made possible by a $2.5m investment from the NSW Government.

It is led by Professor Michael Kassiou at The University of Sydney in collaboration with Dr Shafagh Waters at the University of NSW and Associate Professor Anai Gonzalez Cordero at CMRI.

Chief Scientist Professor Huge Durrant-Whyte said at the launch that he believes the “biological research revolution is going to overtake the AI digital revolution’’.

“Organoids are at the heart of where biological research is going,’’ Prof Durrant-Whyte said. “This is so fantastic to see, and I think it is just ground zero for what will happen next.’’

CMRI’s Director Professor Roger Reddel said he still finds this technology amazing.

“Until 2006, what is being done here now was regarded as being contrary to one of the major principles of biology” Prof Reddel said. “Now we are taking cells from skin or blood, and in the lab, through a series of steps, we’re generating from these cells a wide range of types of mini-organs. At CMRI, a major area of research is inherited diseases of the retina. We can create a mini retina in the lab dish from a patient with a blinding eye condition and then test to see if a new gene therapy is able to cure the cause of their blindness.’’

Associate Professor Gonzalez Cordero leads CMRI’s Stem Cell and Organoid Facility and the Stem Cell Medicine Unit. Her team will be producing many types of organoids needed by the new centre.

The cells that CMRI provides to the NSW Organoid Innovation Centre will be accessed by researchers at other institutes, companies and hospitals to shorten the time between discovery of new treatments and their availability to patients who need them.

Prof Reddel said one of the key aspects of the NSW Organoid Innovation Centre was collaboration.

“Anai is a very collaborative researcher and collaboration is something I think we generally do very well in NSW. CMRI is very glad to be a part of this and we look forward to seeing the advances that will come out of this Centre.’’