ion channel in nerve cells
July 20, 2022 22:31 Robert Klatt
- A new method magnetic stimulation allows Neurons of a fruit fly to activate specifically
- The insects became too nanoparticles in ion channels of the nervous system implanted, which can be heated by magnet
- In the future, the technology should Basis for applications in medicine form and it about give blind people their sense of sight back
The neurons of a genetically modified fly can be controlled remotely via implanted nanoparticles. In the long term, magnetic stimulation is to be used in medicine, for example to enable blind people to see.
Houston (U.S.A.). A team of neuroscientists from Brown University and Baylor College of Medicine led by Jacob Robinson Rice University have a wireless Technology developed with them neurons von fruit flies can be activated in a targeted manner almost in real time. The knowledge gained could be used as a basis for various applications in the future medicine serve.
“Science is looking for research into the brain or the treatment of neurological disorders for instruments that are both incredibly precise and minimally invasive. Remote control of selected neural circuits with magnetic fields is something of a holy grail for neurotechnology. Our work is an important step in this direction because it increases the speed of magnetic remote control, bringing it closer to the brain’s natural speed,” explains Robinson.
Neurons activated by ion channel
According to Robinson, the new technology can activate neurons about 50 times faster than previously used magnetic stimulation technologies. “We made progress because the lead author, Charles Sebesta, had the idea of using a new ion channel that is sensitive to the rate of temperature change. By bringing together experts in genetic engineering, nanotechnology and electrical engineering, we were able to put all the pieces together and prove that this idea works. This was truly a team effort by world-class scientists with whom we were fortunate to work,” said Robinson.
Nanoparticles injected into fruit flies
In her publication in the specialist magazine Nature Materials the researchers explain that they have a special ion channel in the nervous system of fruit flies per genetic engineering have expressed that can be activated by heat. In order to be able to “remotely control” the channel, the researchers implanted nanoparticles in the flies, which can be heated in the insect’s body using a magnetic field.
They then placed the genetically modified animals in a dish over which a camera and an electromagnet were positioned. They were able to document the movements of the flies and the reactions to the magnetic field in detail.
Development of brain communication technologies
“The long-term goal of this work is to develop methods that can be used to activate certain brain regions in humans for therapeutic purposes without the need for surgical intervention,” explains Robinson. In the future, this technology could, for example, restore the sight of blind people by specifically stimulating corresponding regions of the brain.
“To match the brain’s natural precision, we probably need to achieve a response in the range of a few hundredths of a second. So we still have a long way to go,” said Robinson.
Nature Materials, doi: 10.1038/s41563-022-01281-7