𝐍𝐓/ New tool activates deep brain neurons by combining ultrasound, genetics
Neuroscience biweekly vol. 34, 28th May — 11th June
TL;DR
- Neurological disorders such as Parkinson’s disease and epilepsy have had some treatment success with deep brain stimulation, but those require surgical device implantation. A multidisciplinary team at Washington University in St. Louis has developed a new brain stimulation technique using focused ultrasound that is able to turn specific types of neurons in the brain on and off and precisely control motor activity without surgical device implantation.
- Researchers have developed a new technique that allows microscopic fluorescence imaging at four times the depth limit imposed by light diffusion. Fluorescence microscopy is often used to image molecular and cellular details of the brain in animal models of various diseases but, until now, has been limited to small volumes and highly invasive procedures due to intense light scattering by the skin and skull.
- Psychotic disorders come with a progressive decline in IQ. If current drug treatments are successful in containing psychotic symptoms, nothing can be done to prevent the deterioration of intellectual skills that leads to loss of autonomy. Researchers have discovered that prescription of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) in late childhood can reduce the deterioration of intellectual abilities and have a neuroprotective effect on some of the brain regions affected by the psychotic illness.
- Researchers have developed a technique that could allow deep brain stimulation devices to sense activity in the brain and adjust stimulation accordingly.
- A strange thing sometimes happens when we listen to a spoken phrase again and again: It begins to sound like a song. This phenomenon, called the “speech-to-song illusion,” can offer a window into how the mind operates and give insight into conditions that affect people’s ability to communicate, like aphasia and aging people’s decreased ability to recall words. Now, researchers from the University of Kansas have published a study in PLOS ONE examining if the speech-to-song illusion happens in adults who are 55 or older as powerfully as it does with younger people.
- A team of multiple sclerosis (MS) experts led a pilot randomized controlled trial of robotic-exoskeleton assisted exercise rehabilitation (REAER) effects on mobility, cognition, and brain connectivity in people with substantial MS-related disability. Their results showed that REAER is likely an effective intervention, and is a promising therapy for improving the lives of those with MS.
- How old is your brain compared to your chronological age? A new measure of brain health developed by researchers at Rush University Medical Center may offer a novel approach to identifying individuals at risk of memory and thinking problems, according to research results published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association.
- Through the Abecedarian Project, an early education, randomized controlled trial that has followed children since 1971, researchers have discovered an enhanced learning environment during the first five years of life shapes the brain in ways that are apparent four decades later.
- Stroke survivors’ recovery of speech predicted by computer simulation: Researchers have developed new methods to predict a person’s ability to improve language skills even before they start therapy.
- Scientists have recorded blood oxygen levels in the hippocampus and provided experimental proof for why the area is vulnerable to damage and degeneration, a precursor to Alzheimer’s disease.
- 'Nature Neuroscience' June issue is now live.
#NT #Neuroscience
https://medium.com/paradigm-fund/nt-new-tool-activates-deep-brain-neurons-by-combining-ultrasound-genetics-af18d46e3de5 
