Eight months in, 2,021 has already become a record year in brain-computer interface (BCI) funding, tripling the $97 million raised in 2019.
Category: neuroscience – Page 600
“Our research may help us understand how abnormalities in anxiety-like behavior occur and design circuit-based therapeutic approaches for correcting them,” remarks Professor Ji Won Um from the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences at DGIST, who led the study.
Summary: Study identifies the role a specific protein plays in regulating the development of inhibitory synapses in the hippocampus in the context of anxiety-related behaviors.
Source: DGIST
The mechanisms behind the organization of neuronal synapses remain unclear owing to the sheer number of genes, proteins, and neuron types involved. In a recent study, Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology scientists conducted a series of experiments in genetically modified mice to clarify the role of two proteins in regulating the development of inhibitory synapses in the hippocampus, in the context of anxiety-related behaviors, paving the way to better understand the brain.
Most memory resistor (“memristor”) systems use electrons as the charge carrier, but it may also be possible to use ionic carriers, similar to the way that neurons work. Robin et al. studied an aqueous electrolyte confined into a pseudo two-dimensional gap between two graphite layers (see the Perspective by Hou and Hou). The authors observed a current–voltage relation that exhibits hysteresis, and the conductance depends on the history of the system, also known as the memresistor effect. Using simulations of their system, they can model the emission of voltage spikes characteristic of neuromorphic activity.
Science, abf7923, this issue p. 687; see also abj0437, p. 628
Recent advances in nanofluidics have enabled the confinement of water down to a single molecular layer. Such monolayer electrolytes show promise in achieving bioinspired functionalities through molecular control of ion transport. However, the understanding of ion dynamics in these systems is still scarce. Here, we develop an analytical theory, backed up by molecular dynamics simulations, that predicts strongly nonlinear effects in ion transport across quasi–two-dimensional slits. We show that under an electric field, ions assemble into elongated clusters, whose slow dynamics result in hysteretic conduction. This phenomenon, known as the memristor effect, can be harnessed to build an elementary neuron. As a proof of concept, we carry out molecular simulations of two nanofluidic slits that reproduce the Hodgkin-Huxley model and observe spontaneous emission of voltage spikes characteristic of neuromorphic activity.
Wirelessly powered microchips, which have an ~1 GHz electromagnetic transcutaneous link to an external telecom hub, can be used for multichannel in vivo neural sensing, stimulation and data acquisition.
A new kind of neural interface system that coordinates the activity of hundreds of tiny brain sensors could one day deepen understanding of the brain and lead to new medical therapies.
Yes this says a 3 year epigenetic clock reversal in just 8 weeks thanks to diet and lifestyle changes. There is a list of supplements too:
Alpha ketoglutarate, vitamin C and vitamin A curcumin, epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), rosmarinic acid, quercetin, luteolin.
Manipulations to slow biological aging and extend healthspan are of interest given the societal and healthcare costs of our aging population. Herein we report on a randomized controlled clinical trial conducted among 43 healthy adult males between the ages of 50–72. The 8-week treatment program included diet, sleep, exercise and relaxation guidance, and supplemental probiotics and phytonutrients. The control group received no intervention. Genome-wide DNA methylation analysis was conducted on saliva samples using the Illumina Methylation Epic Array and DNAmAge was calculated using the online Horvath DNAmAge clock (2013). The diet and lifestyle treatment was associated with a 3.23 years decrease in DNAmAge compared with controls (p=0.018). DNAmAge of those in the treatment group decreased by an average 1.96 years by the end of the program compared to the same individuals at the beginning with a strong trend towards significance (p=0.066). Changes in blood biomarkers were significant for mean serum 5-methyltetrahydrofolate (+15%, p=0.004) and mean triglycerides (−25%, p=0.009). To our knowledge, this is the first randomized controlled study to suggest that specific diet and lifestyle interventions may reverse Horvath DNAmAge (2013) epigenetic aging in healthy adult males. Larger-scale and longer duration clinical trials are needed to confirm these findings, as well as investigation in other human populations.
Keywords: DNA methylation, epigenetic, aging, lifestyle, biological clock.
The Future of Everything covers the innovation and technology transforming the way we live, work and play, with monthly issues on health, money, cities and more. This month is Education & Learning, online starting Aug. 6 and in the paper on Aug. 13.
No one has yet deciphered the brain signals that encode a complex thought, turn an idea into words or make a lasting memory. But powerful clues are emerging to drive the neurotechnology of learning, scientists say.
On the frontier of neuroscience, researchers are inventing devices to enhance learning abilities, from wearable nerve stimulators that boost mental focus to headsets for wireless brain-to-brain communication.
Is a unique app designed to put you in the shoes of someone living with dementia. See one of the 360 clips from the experience.
http://awalkthroughdementia.org/
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/a-walk-through-dementia/id1242267344
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.alzheimers…a&hl=en_GB
A 21st Century Mystery School — “Creating New Paradigms In Wellness And Wisdom Never Seen Before, And Never More Needed Than Now” — Dr. Dennis McKenna, Founder, McKenna Academy of Natural Philosophy.
Dr. Dennis McKenna is an American ethnopharmacologist, research pharmacognosist, lecturer, author, and Founder of the McKenna Academy of Natural Philosophy (www.mckenna.academy).
Dr. McKenna is a founding board member and the director of ethnopharmacology at the Heffter Research Institute, a non-profit organization concerned with the investigation of the potential therapeutic uses of psychedelic medicines. He also serves on the Advisory Board of the American Botanical Council; as Founder and Executive Director for the Institute for Natural Products Research; as an Independent Research Consultant to the Phytomedicine and Nutraceutical Industry; was formerly on the Editorial Board of Phytomedicine, International Journal of Phytotherapy and Phytopharmacology; and is an adjunct professor in the Center for Spirituality and Healing at the University of Minnesota.
The NIH-led Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies® (BRAIN) Initiative continues to teach us about the world’s most sophisticated computer: the human brain. This striking image offers a spectacular case in point, thanks to a new tool called Visual Neuronal Dynamics (VND).
VND is not a camera. It is a powerful software program that can display, animate, and analyze models of neurons and their connections, or networks, using 3D graphics. What you’re seeing in this colorful image is a strip of mouse primary visual cortex, the area in the brain where incoming sensory information gets processed into vision.
This strip contains more than 230,000 neurons of 17 different cell types. Long and spindly excitatory neurons that point upward (purple, blue, red, orange) are intermingled with short and stubby inhibitory neurons (green, cyan, magenta). Slicing through the neuronal landscape is a neuropixels probe (silver): a tiny flexible silicon detector that can record brain activity in awake animals [1].