Naturalistic communication is an aim for neuroprostheses. Here the authors present a neuroprosthesis that restores the voice of a paralyzed person simultaneously with their speaking attempts, enabling naturalistic communication.
Category: neuroscience
NIH-funded study uses cutting-edge imaging techniques to reconstruct features underlying learning and memory in the mouse brain.
A bioengineer highlights the potential of low-intensity ultrasound for multiple uses, from enhanced drug delivery to the brain to combating cancer
The system, which also synthesizes her voice, takes no more than a second to translate thoughts to speech.
Researchers at the University of Virginia have created the first comprehensive protein-level atlas of brain development, providing unprecedented insight into how the brain forms and potential implications for understanding neurological disorders. The study, published in Nature Neuroscience, analyzed over 24 million individual cells from mouse brains, revealing detailed molecular pathways that guide brain development from early embryonic stages through early postnatal development.
The research team, led by Professors Christopher Deppmann and Eli Zunder, used an innovative technique called mass cytometry to track 40 different proteins across various brain regions and developmental stages. The approach provided a more detailed view of cellular function than previous studies that primarily examined RNA.
“While RNA studies have given us important insights, proteins are the actual workforce of cells,” explained Deppmann, a professor in the College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences’ Department of Biology. “By studying proteins directly, we can better understand how cells are functioning and communicating during brain development.”
The effects of quantum mechanics—the laws of physics that apply at exceedingly small scales—are extremely sensitive to disturbances. This is why quantum computers must be held at temperatures colder than outer space, and only very, very small objects, such as atoms and molecules, generally display quantum properties.
By quantum standards, biological systems are quite hostile environments: they’re warm and chaotic, and even their fundamental components—such as cells—are considered very large.
But a group of theoretical and experimental researchers has discovered a distinctly quantum effect in biology that survives these difficult conditions and may also present a way for the brain to protect itself from degenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s.
There has been speculation for many years that the human brain lives “on the edge of chaos”, at a critical transition point between randomness and order; but direct experimental evidence has been lacking.
Improvements to brain–computer interfaces are bringing the technology closer to natural conversation speed.
Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects approximately 1% of people over the age of 60 and 5% of those over the age of 85. Current drugs for Parkinson’s disease mainly affect the symptoms and cannot stop its progression. Nanotechnology provides a solution to address some challenges in therapy, such as overcoming the blood-brain barrier (BBB), adverse pharmacokinetics, and the limited bioavailability of therapeutics. The reformulation of drugs into nanoparticles (NPs) can improve their biodistribution, protect them from degradation, reduce the required dose, and ensure target accumulation. Furthermore, appropriately designed nanoparticles enable the combination of diagnosis and therapy with a single nanoagent.
In recent years, gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) have been studied with increasing interest due to their intrinsic nanozyme activity. They can mimic the action of superoxide dismutase, catalase, and peroxidase. The use of 13-nm gold nanoparticles (CNM-Au8®) in bicarbonate solution is being studied as a potential treatment for Parkinson’s disease and other neurological illnesses. CNM-Au8® improves remyelination and motor functions in experimental animals.
Among the many techniques for nanoparticle synthesis, green synthesis is increasingly used due to its simplicity and therapeutic potential. Green synthesis relies on natural and environmentally friendly materials, such as plant extracts, to reduce metal ions and form nanoparticles. Moreover, the presence of bioactive plant compounds on their surface increases the therapeutic potential of these nanoparticles. The present article reviews the possibilities of nanoparticles obtained by green synthesis to combine the therapeutic effects of plant components with gold.
A bioelectric capsule tricks the brain into feeling full by activating the stomach’s stretch receptors.