The device uses a combination of this optogenetic technology and electroencephalogram (EEG). EEG is a neuroimaging technique that was developed by Hans Berger in 1929. Electrodes placed on the surface of the scalp measure the voltage fluctuations caused by neurons firing. Berger's goal in its development was to find a way to measure different psychological and conscious states. Through his research, he was able to identify that there were, in fact, specific patterns of voltage fluctuations shown at various brain states. In the case of Fussenegger's device, researchers asked a human participant undergoing an EEG to either focus on a game of Minecraft for ten minutes, respond to a visual stimulus of an LED display, or to simply relax. It has been observed that these three different mind states have "signatures" or typical patterns shown in the EEG data. These signatures are then recorded and given corresponding thresholds on a computer for how much light gets emitted by the infrared implant in the mouse. The computer can be connected via bluetooth to the infrared device, therefore being able to control activation of the specific light-sensitive gene's expression. Doing so, it would be able to harness the electric signaling from the human mind to control when particular genes produce protein to be secreted into the bloodstream of the mouse.
Further trials and research on this device could lead to convenient and efficient methods of treatment for certain neurological diseases that produce typical EEG patterns for humans. A patient with epilepsy could set her light to trigger implanted gene expression and thus produce crucial proteins in the bloodstream when a certain EEG signal pattern that occurs when she has seizures is observed. Although an amazing concept, one could be wary of how accurately the computer could interpret the EEG data in order to ensure that the genes are not expressed at the wrong times due to other brain activity independent of the three tasks described in this experiment. Nevertheless, it will be interesting to see how this technology develops further in the future.
Works Cited:
http://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/41416/title/Mind-Controlled-Gene-Expression/
Gazzaniga, Michael S. Cognitive Neuroscience. 3rd ed. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2009. Print.
This is a very interesting concept! I have not come across many studies yet that combine human studies so closely with mice or rat studies. The implications of this technology, if fine-tuned, could be extremely beneficial to those that suffer from neurological disorders such as epilepsy. It is curious, however, what the ramifications would be from over or under stimulating these proteins. Also, as shown in the experiment, different tasks involve different variations of light output. Will we be able to consistently predict the specific electrical signaling that potentially stimulate such neurological traumatic events and predict how altering the production of this signaling might alter daily tasks? This idea sheds great light on a potential way that some neurological disorders might be overcome in the future!
ReplyDeleteAn interesting concept in neurobiology is long-term potentiation (LTP) and long-term depression (LTD). It's a process by which a connection between neurons is either strengthened (LTP) or weakened (LTD) by way of the pattern of activity, i.e. if there is consistent communication and production of action potentials between two neurons, their connection will be strengthened, and if not, then the connection is weakened. The important note about this process is that, for it to be a long-term change in the postsynaptic receptors, there must be a change in the expression of genes. If more research can be done with this topic (and especially with finding a way to utilize optogenetics in humans), being able to modify the genes responsible for the connections between neurons may be a way of controlling how neurons respond in the face of neurological disorders.
ReplyDeleteThis technology sounds very promising, but since the EEG data has to be very accurate to ensure that the wrong genes don't get produced at the wrong time, it has me a little wary of the potential benefits. If scientists could find a way to make this technology work 100% properly, I would be very excited. However, I don't think this is entirely possible, because the margin of error doesn't allow for mistakes. This could be very helpful in treating neurological disorders in the future, but at the current state, a lot more testing needs to be done to see how useful this technology can be.
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