This year’s Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine highlights a fascinating discovery about how our brain works.

Researchers have shown how light can be used to control specific brain cells, opening new possibilities for studying the nervous system. This approach, known as optogenetics, allows scientists to activate or silence selected neurons using light-sensitive proteins. It helps researchers investigate how particular brain circuits influence movement, memory, behaviour and other functions.

The technique has transformed neuroscience by giving researchers much more precise control over the activity of individual cells. However, turning these discoveries into safe, effective treatments for human neurological conditions remains an ongoing challenge.

Source: Nobel Prize scientific background on optogenetics and neuroscience research.

What interests you more about this discovery: understanding how the brain works or the possibility of developing new treatments for neurological disorders?

#Neuroscience #Optogenetics #BrainResearch #NobelPrize #ScienceFacts

Visuals are AI Illustrated

Neuroscientists have long observed biophotons produced in brain tissue. Nobody knows what these photons are for, but researchers are beginning to explore the possibilities.

The finnish trade register has just announced, that the HumanCharger manufacturer Valkee Ltd has lost all of its share capital. That means, that all of the company’s ressources are depleted, and new capital is not in sight – not even theoretically.

Targeting the treatment of chronic pain and other neurological disorders, the on-off switches of optogenetics are transforming neurosciences. So far used in lab animals such as mice, a wireless signal activates LEDs located near an animal’s spinal cord so that a blue light turns on genetically modified neurons, while a yellow light turns them off. This enables researchers to discover the brain paths involved in such conditions as obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) as well as depression.

Inserting the LEDs near the spine of mice, however, is a bit different than in their human counterparts. The procedure involves the genetic engineering of neurons so that molecular switches that activate and deactivate cells can occur and an optical fiber would need to be placed in the brain to trigger the switches.

Optogenetics is a marvel of our age, enabling neuroscientists to turn brain cells on and off with pulses of light. But until now there’s been an obvious difficulty: How do you deliver that light to brain cells that are tucked inside an animal’s skull?

Today we get the best answer yet, from the Stanford lab of Ada Poon. She and her colleagues have invented a tiny, wireless LED device that can be fully implanted beneath the skin of a mouse. The device lets researchers turn on the light and stimulate neurons when the mouse is scampering around, behaving more or less normally. This system, described today in the journal Nature Methods, seems a big improvement over previous technology, which used wires or bulky head-mounted devices to activate the light switch.

Here’s a quick optogenetics primer, in case you need it. The technique makes use of neurons that have been genetically altered to respond to light, often with the introduction of genes from a strain of green algae. Researchers can control which part of a mouse brain contains these light-sensitive neurons, and they can then study the function of that brain region by activating the neurons—essentially turning them on and off—while watching the animal’s behavior. Using this method, scientists can learn about basic brain anatomy or study dysfunctions seen in human diseases.

The first optogenetics systems used fiber optic cables to deliver the light, which meant the mice had wires coming out of their heads and couldn’t move around much. Over the past five years, researchers have worked on wireless systems, in which a head-mounted device receives the signal to stimulate and triggers an implanted LED.

The point of these experiments were not to hurt mice, of course, but to demonstrate that neuroscience has a cool new tool, and a new way to illuminate the mysteries of the brain.

This animation illustrates optogenetics — a radical new technology for controlling brain activity with light.

http://video.mit.edu/watch/optogenetics-controlling-the-brain-with-light-7659/

In 2006 Nokia engineer Antti Aunio and biologist Juuso Nissilä applied for a Finnish patent for a device consisting of ear-plugs that could deliver LED light into the ear canals, and a small controller box. 1 According to Nissilä, the product idea was possibly born as early as 2005

In spring 2007, their company Valkee Ltd. was founded to further develop (industry speak for to market) the device.

They convinced Anssi Vanjoki, Nokia’s no.2, and later some venture capitalists, to invest into the start-up

It was easy, however, to obtain authority approval for their ”medical device”, which is available in Europe for useless or even potentially dangerous things.

The launch of the ”light headset” in 2010 was accompanied by an intense PR campaign, the most notable event being the INNOSUOMI award presented by the Finnish President Tarja Halonen, acquired by Valkee with false claims. 6 The story of the innovative young firm from the north, promising help for the many sufferers of Finlands national disease, Seasonal Affective Disorder, hit the media like a bombshell. A profitable business with world-wide markets was exactly what the nation needed and wanted, at the time of Nokia’s spectacular downturn which left thousands unemployed and the Finnish state whithout it’s most important taxpayer.

At this point, Valkee could only cite a small unpublished open study.

Christmas however, did not bring great sales for Valkee
In spring 2011, they were also scientifically bancrupt

Nobody stood up to destroy the illusion, when Valkee announced dubious ”scientific revolutions” in the press. The scam went unnoticed by the scientific community. Valkee provided just stuff that looked like science, enough to sell the fake story.

The majority of the public although, remained sceptic, but critics were silenced when Valkee announced a positive randomized controlled study in November 2011, making it into the TV evening news. 12 The results were clumsily falsified

The Scam is Busted

Valkee, however, overdid the bad thing, and in February 2012 a whistleblower teamed up with two well-known finnish journalists, Renny Jokelin and Magnus Berglund (3-times Prix Europa nominee and famous for busting the Patria scandal). They made a piece for MOT, a TV program

It effectively ended Valkee’s media misuse overnight. The next day, Nissilä confirmed the key facts from MOT in a radio interview, but still claimed to have made a scientific revolution

Valkee tricked at least some 10.000 people into buying this expensive toy. Their markets are now the UK, Germany, even Japan.

There is still not a single peer-reviewed article supporting this “innovation”, and strong evidence against it.