Sentences with phrase «target neurons»

The aim is to introduce into the shuttle a viral vector loaded with the gene that the cells of these patients lack, with a particular focus on targeting neurons.

«If we can find a way to target those neurons in humans, maybe we can reduce the «high» produced by the drug and reduce the withdrawal symptoms,» said Olivier George, assistant professor at TSRI and senior author of the new study.

Over the past few years Crick's vision for targeting neurons has begun to materialize thanks to a sophisticated combination of fiber optics and genetic engineering.

By pairing a receptor that targets neurons with a molecule that degrades the main component of Alzheimer's plaques, the biologists were able to substantially dissolve these plaques in mice brains and human brain tissue, offering a potential mechanism for treating the debilitating disease, as well as other conditions that involve either the brain or the eyes.

The discovery, published in Nature Neuroscience, may lead to better sleep aids that target neurons more selectively, potentially eliminating side effects such as next - day drowsiness.

Optogenetic technologies targeting neurons rely on the electrical impulses these cells use to quickly transmit messages.

Armed with two proven methods for activating targeted neurons at will — one optical, one chemical — the researchers were able to turn on the glutamate - releasing cells in obese mice.

«But we already have cochlear implants to replace hair cells, so we decided the first priority was to start by targeting the neurons.»

-- The cellular and molecular mechanisms by which one neuron finds specific target neurons and eventually forms functional sub networks are not fully understood.

The system, originally developed in 2007 and refined by Wall and Callaway for targeting specific cell types in 2010, uses a modified version of the rabies virus to «infect» a brain region, which in turn targets neurons that are connected to it.

WGA may attach to your myelin sheath and is capable of inhibiting nerve growth factor, which is important for the growth, maintenance, and survival of certain target neurons.

Pictured: An engineered neural device runs mathematical algorithms (top), which control delivery of electrical stimulation to targeted neurons in the brain (middle).

Such basic research is giving scientists a rudimentary ability to target where a memory is stored in the brain, Josselyn said, and they also can manipulate the activity of these targeted neurons to turn them on or off.

In this scenario, when an object moved in the neuron's preferred direction, excitatory impulses would reach the target neuron first, triggering positively charged sodium ions to flow into the cell — an excitatory current.

As the targeted neurons were stimulated, she watched to see how the mouse's behavior changed.

Cracking the Animal Code In cell culture, only a small number of mild virus particles were needed to deliver the opsin gene to targeted neurons.

When they reach their target neurons, each neuron receives a unique combination of colors, thereby giving it a visually distinct hue that makes it easier for the researchers to distinguish its fine details from those of its neighbors.

«Operating under identical conditions in our simulations, we've shown that a single fractal electrode stimulates all of the target neurons, while the Euclidean electrode connects with only 10 percent of them,» Watterson said.

«We chose to target neurons that regulate the activity of the hippocampus, a structure that is critical for memory formation during wakefulness and is known as the «GPS system» of the brain,» Williams says.

George hopes the recent study will help researchers develop drugs or genetic therapies to target these neurons.

He also wrote software that analyzed the microscope's images to locate the target neurons, and then pointed and fired the lasers accordingly — all at a rate of 50 frames per second.

If only the local effects matter for medicine, tomorrow's versions of this ancient toxin molecule may be able to alleviate symptoms from wrinkles to severe muscle spasms without moving beyond the target neurons.

Instead of using only one pair of stimulating electrodes, the design splits the work among six electrode pairs that each deliver a fraction of the desired current in rapid pulses that overlap and add up inside their target neurons.

Dr. Brownfield's work on the serotonergic system and its impact on brain function has focused on the molecular anatomy of serotonergic neurons and their target neurons.

As in - you're focused on a «Where's Waldo» task, and with the proper stimulation, the task is easier to do, because the targeted neurons have less resistance to firing.

He said that his team chose the targeted neuron, called a V2a interneuron, because it serves as a «long relay cable» between the neurons in the brain and the motor neurons that connect directly to muscle.