Yuhao (Lauren) Gao, a Ph.D. candidate at Emory University, has received IFER funding for her project, "Human Locus Coeruleus Organoids as a Human Cellular Model for Understanding Early-Onset Alzheimer's Disease Pathogenesis." The locus coeruleus (LC), the brain's primary source of norepinephrine, is among the earliest regions to develop tau pathology and degenerate in Alzheimer's disease. Despite its significance, the LC's involvement in Alzheimer's has been studied primarily in animal models, which fail to capture this "LC-first" pattern of human disease progression. Yuhao is using human iPSC-derived brain organoids and assembloids to trace how toxic proteins like tau spread from this vulnerable region to other parts of the brain. By characterizing the spatiotemporal emergence of Alzheimer's hallmarks and assessing how LC dysfunction impacts cortical networks, this work will delineate the interregional dynamics of disease pathogenesis in a physiologically relevant, animal-free system—offering insights into LC vulnerability and novel therapeutic targets.