The remote control brain experiment was successful, but it scared the netizens

Fengsei Xiaoxiao from Concave Temple qubit | Public account QbitAI can remotely "manipulate" biological brains without implanting control devices? A recent study published in a sub-journal of Nature rushed to the hot search as soon as it was posted: Although the subjects of this experiment were not humans but mice, the first reaction of many netizens after reading it was "too dangerous", "" Kind of anti-human": So, is this really a particularly scary technology? In fact, this research mainly uses certain technical means to illuminate the mouse's head with special light to turn on its "movement mode" - I can't help but want to walk around
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It can be said that it is a real physical exercise (manual dog head)
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And, the technology is truly groundbreaking
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According to Stanford University, this is the first time scientists have successfully controlled the neural circuits of normal organisms from a distance without invading the brain
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During the entire procedure, no devices were implanted and no damage was done to the mice's scalp or skull
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At the same time, it is not only a technical exploration, but also has certain application value in the treatment of neurological diseases
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Let's take a look at it in detail
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Using near-infrared light to remotely control brain cells In fact, using light to control brain cells is already a relatively mature research
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One of the most typical technologies is optogenetics, which was once rated by Science as one of the "Top 10 Breakthrough Research in the Field of Biology" in the past decade, and was even predicted to be a Nobel Prize-level research achievement (recognized as a "Nobel Award Weathervane").
Lasker Prize)
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This technology was also proposed by Stanford University, which specifically refers to the introduction of exogenous (not naturally produced in vivo) light-sensitive protein genes into brain cells, so that brain cells express light-sensitive proteins on the cell membrane structure
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Then, irradiating these cells with light of a specific wavelength can control the activation and closing of light-sensitive proteins, thereby activating or inhibiting neurons in the brain, and achieving the purpose of "controlling brain cells"
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BUT, this technology has always had a drawback - optical implants have to be installed and fiber optic tethers inserted into the skull
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This is because optogenetics relies heavily on visible light, and the brain is opaque and cannot be passed through by visible light
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However, implanted devices will not only cause tissue damage, but also restrict the free movement of organisms, making it difficult to study the neural activity of the brain under the natural behavior of organisms
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In the latest study, scientists have finally succeeded in removing the implanted device from the mouse's head
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They found a type of near-infrared light, the 1000-1700nm near-infrared zone 2, that maintains high penetrability in highly scattered brain tissue
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Without implanting optical devices, how to control brain cells through light signals? This refers to a protein in living organisms called TRPV1, whose discoverers were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine last year
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Specifically, it's a capsaicin (the stuff that produces burning & pain) receptors, which is an ion channel protein that responds to heat and pain, ie, is very sensitive to heat & pain
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Implant it in a rattlesnake, and the rattlesnake can hunt warm-blooded prey in the dark; implanting it in the cone cells of the mouse retina gives the mouse vision in the infrared spectrum
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However, when scientists implanted the heat-sensitive molecule into mouse neurons, they found that it had no effect on the thermal signal of near-infrared light, which is still too small
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Engraftment here refers to the transfection of target neurons with adenovirus encapsulating TRPV1, that is, the introduction of DNA, RNA or protein into cells
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So they designed a "sensor" molecule, called MINDS, that was designed to absorb and amplify infrared light
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In this way, the principle design of the whole system is completed
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It is hoped that for the treatment of neurological diseases, further experiments will be carried out to test whether this theory is feasible
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The scientists first added TRPV1 channels to neurons on one side of the motor cortex of the mouse brain, then injected MINDS molecules, and finally observed the behavior of the mice
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△Bald mice make it easier for light to penetrate.
They were surprised to find that when the infrared light at 1m above the fence was turned on, the mice that were only active in a small area at first immediately started to circle around, greatly increasing the range of activity
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The black line represents the activity track of the mice before irradiation, the red line represents during irradiation, and the gray line represents after irradiation
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Mice in the control group did not have this response
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That is to say, the stimulation of motor cells in the brain of mice by near-infrared light worked
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They also injected the two molecules into dopamine-expressing neurons in mice, and two days later, placed an infrared light-focusing device in the Y-maze where the mice stayed
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It was found that the mice were "addicted" to infrared light, which stimulates dopamine neurons, and stayed in the light for the longest time
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△ Different colors represent the time the mice stay, red is the longest, and it works again
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While motor neurons are located at the top of the brain, and dopamine neurons are located at the bottom of the brain, this non-invasive method controlled by near-infrared light works on neurons in any area of ​​the brain
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According to Hong Guosong, the corresponding author of the paper, the main purpose of this study is to achieve one of the biggest unmet needs in neuroscience through this non-invasive method - in mice under free activities (such as social interaction), Observe and record the function of specific brain cells and circuits deep in their brains
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Further, this approach also contributes to a better understanding of the human cognitive system
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If this technology eventually matures, it can be used to clinically modulate specific neuronal circuits in the patient's brain and treat some neurological diseases, such as epilepsy
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After carefully reading this study, some netizens suggested that these studies are not only very important research tools and methods for exploring neuron functions, but also provide an extremely important basis for studying the brain: some netizens hope that it can be used for more In the treatment of multiple diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease
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Research from the Chinese team This research was done in collaboration with Hong Guosong's team at Stanford University and Pu Kanyi's team at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore
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There are two authors, one is Wu Xiang, a doctoral student from Stanford University, and the other is Jiang Yuyan from Nanyang Technological University
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The corresponding author is Hong Guosong, assistant professor at Stanford University School of Materials Science and Engineering and Wu Cai Neuroscience Research Institute (donated by Wu Minghua-Cai Chongxin and his wife)
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He graduated from Peking University with a bachelor's degree, and later obtained a doctorate in chemistry from Stanford University.
He went to Harvard University for postdoctoral work, and joined Stanford University in 2018.
His current research interests are materials science and neuroscience
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△Hong Guosong’s co-corresponding author is Pu Kanyi, associate professor of Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.
He previously graduated from East China University of Science and Technology with a bachelor’s degree.
After obtaining a master’s degree at Fudan University, he obtained a doctorate at the National University of Singapore and did postdoctoral work at Stanford University
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His research direction is polymer materials and biomaterials, including nanotechnology, etc.
The citations of the two corresponding authors are also over 20,000+
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△ Pu Kanyi So, in which directions do you hope this research will be applied? Paper address: https:// Reference link: [1] https:// https://neuroscience.
stanford .
edu/news/researchers-control-brain-circuits-distance-using-infrared-light[3]https://s.
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