A team of scientists has hacked a light-responsive protein into tadpoles, and used it as an on-off switch to suppress tumor growth. It’s a fascinating development that could one day lead to new tools for fighting cancer in humans.
Researchers from the University of Oxford have rewritten positive memories associated with cocaine in mice. The achievement could expand our understanding of memory, while demonstrating that it’s possible to neurologically reverse ingrained bad behavior, such as drug addiction.
This is surely a sign that we’re living in the future: Researchers have just invented a remote-controlled LED chip that can make a mouse walk in circles by using light to activate motor neurons in the animal’s brain—or peripheral nerves throughout its body.
If you work in neuroscience, or follow the field, you probably know who Karl Deisseroth is. At the very least, you’re familiar with his methods. He’s best known for his development of optogenetics, a technique that enables researchers to manipulate individual neurons with light. Today, Deisseroth estimates the…
Imagine being able to control biological processes with your mind. A new experiment suggests this is possible. By combining optogenetics and cybernetics, humans were able to use their thoughts to alter genes in mice. In future, these mind-operated implants could be used to self-treat migraines, back pain, epilepsy,…
By using pulses of light, researchers at the UC San Diego School of Medicine have produced, erased, and restored fearful memories in rats. It's a finding that could have profound implications for people struggling with neurodegenerative and anxiety disorders.
This is wild. Chasing the elusive dream of curing paralysis, a team of scientists used stem cells and optogenetics to circumvent the central motor system of lab mice whose nerves had been cut. This enabled them to blast individual motor neurons with a laser, triggering movement in the legs of the mice.
Researchers call it the Fly Mind-Altering Device (aka "FlyMAD"), and to demonstrate the system's effectiveness, they've shown that firing a laser at the head of a fly can compel it to flirt, and attempt to copulate, with a ball of wax. (Come on. You know you want to watch this.)
Pain is a hard problem. Sure, we can throw a little morphine at pain in the short term, but researchers continue to struggle with solutions for chronic pain. New research from Stanford's futuristic Bio-X lab looks like a light at the end of the tunnel—literally!
Neuroscientists are increasingly seeing the human brain as a series of modifiable brain circuits. As a result, a lot of money is being spent on the development of biotechnologies that manipulate brain networks. Psychiatric drugs, it would appear, are on the way out.
The movie Inception is getting closer to reality. By planting false memories into the minds of mice, neuroscientists at MIT have created the first artificially implanted memories. And they've brought us closer to understanding the fallibility of human recollection.
What if you could control somebody's desires using a wireless device? It's not a Larry Niven novel — it's today's science. Researchers used a remote controller to stimulate neurons in mice that release the reward chemical dopamine. As a result, they changed the behavior of the mice, from a distance, in the absence of…
A recent breakthrough at MIT and the University of Pennsylvania is set to make the spastic and jerky movements of robots a thing of the past. Using animals for inspiration, researchers have genetically engineered muscle cells to flex in response to light. The breakthrough could result in the creation of highly…
Optogenetics, a brand new field of research in which living, cortical neurons and other cells can be manipulated or controlled with optical technology (namely fiber optic cables), has been heralded as the next big thing for treating such things as heart conditions, paralysis, and even diabetes.
New research could mean no more droopy numb face after you leave the dentist. Scientists are working on a precise form of anesthesia controlled by light.
What if you could treat conditions ranging from Alzheimer's to blindness, all with a flash of light? Researchers think it's possible — and they plan on using tiny particles called quantum dots to do it.
Heart cells created by Stanford researchers could lead to a better pacemaker: The beat of the cells is paced by light rather than electricity.
The emerging field of optogenetics — which enables scientists to control your body's cellular function, using different colored lights — is rapidly changing the way we study and understand the human body.
Over the past several years, genetics researchers have made great strides using optogenetics — the manipulation of genes with different colors of light — and now we're starting to see this new field mature into potential therapies. A group of Swiss researchers published a paper in Science this week explaining how…
Mice equipped with a special light-sensitive gene can experience muscle stimulation when put in close contact with nothing more than a few tiny LEDs. It's a close match for natural muscle stimulation, and could provide a revolutionary paralysis treatment.
