Francis Crick articulated that in order to better understand the brain, scientists would need to be able to control specific types of cells or individual neurons (Crick, 1979). He stated that if this was possible, researchers could activate a single neuron and watch the cascade of other neurons being activated. Or inhibit a neuron and observe what other cells around it followed. Crick continues and believed that this would someday be possible. His knowledge of the visual system, a system of the brain that responds to light, must of led to his thoughts that we could create neurons that express a sensitivity to light in every division of the brain. It is now possible to control specific cell types with high temporal and spatial precision in …show more content…
Shining blue light (473 nm wavelength photons) on these cells, in vitro, would cause them to send a nerve impulse 1-2 milliseconds later. Once the light was turned back off, the cells returned to normalcy. In their resting state, a electrical potential exists between the interior of the cell and outside. When ChR2 was activated, its channel would open and cause an influx of positive ions to increase the internal negative charge. This is a similar process to what is occurring all over the brain during every emotion, action, and sensory input we …show more content…
Rodents mostly, but also zebrafish (Danio rerio) (Douglass et all, 2008), fruit flies (Drosophilia melanogaster) (Lima & Miesenböck, 2005), nematode worms (Caenorlhabditis elegans) (Blaxter 20100) and non-human primates (Han et al., 2011). With a research tool as powerful as optogenetics, the logical next step is producing it in humans for therapeutic effects on mental illnesses. Chow and Boyden recently published an article with discussion about the obstacles that would have to be overcome to bring optogenetics to clinical trials. The largest issue is the use of viral vectors and the subsequent immune response (Chow & Boyden, 2013). Human opsins, such as rhodopsin in the human eye, could be installed into neurons but these cells are slower than the microbial ones currently in use for optogenetics. Gene therapy is advancing everyday and it is possible that some day humans could reap the benefits of the precision actions optogenetics has to offer. Even if optogenetics remains as purely a research tool and does not give rise to beneficial effects directly in our species, it has still offered humans an unparalleled look into the function and dysfunction of the nervous system. Optogenetics has been adopted in laboratories around the world and enabled scientists to increase or decrease the activity of exclusive brain expanses on command. Great insight has been obtained through the use of this research tool and a great deal more
In the chapter “Attention Deficit: The Brain Syndrome of Our Era,” from The New Brain, written by Richard Restak, Restak makes some very good points on his view of multitasking and modern technology. He argues that multitasking is very inefficient and that our modern technology is making our minds weaker. Multitasking and modern technology is causing people to care too much what other people think of them, to not be able to focus on one topic, and to not be able to think for themselves.
In the last 20 years ago, there was a brain scientists that believed that neurons communicated to each other, they represented thoughts, and that glia were kind of like a stucco and mortar holding the house together. They were also considered simple insulators for neuron communication. There is a few of types of glial cells, but recently scientists have begun to focus on a particular type of glial cell it is called the astrocyte; it’s an abundant in the cortex. As you go up the evolutionary ladder, astrocytes in the cortex increase in size and number, with humans having the most astrocytes and also the biggest. Scientists also discovered that astrocytes communicate to themselves in the cortex and they are also capable of sending information to neurons. Astrocytes are also the adult stem cell in the brain and control blood flow to regions of brain activity.
"Neurones monitor or control specific cells or groups of cells" (Martini et al. 2014). The nervous response is rapid, however precise and short-lived, due to the fact that neurotransmitters are broken down and recycled very quickly after they have diffused across the synaptic cleft - in contrast, not all life processes are short-lived, and many require a longer response time. For example; the body continually maintains reproductive capabilities for many years, and other life processes such as growth and development require responses with a long-life span. In addition, not all of the cells in the body are innervated, which means that some cells in the body cannot be reached by the nervous system. As such it is evident that hormones have a major role to play in cellular communication, and the nervous system on its own would not suffice. (Martini et al.
According to Benedict Carey, taking pills to enhance performance in academia is flourishing. Throughout his argument he talks about how individuals are using pills such as Adderall or Provigil to help boost one’s abilities. In his perspective he sees taking stimulants as a horrendous problem within the academic field. The problem with his argument is he is not staying open minded; he stayed in a complete narrow mindset weakening his argument against pills being taken to improve academic success.
Wernig, M., Meissner, A., Foreman, R., Brambrink, T., Ku, M., Hochedlinger, K., Bernstein, B.E., and Jaenisch, R. 2007. In vitro reprogramming of fibroblasts into a pluripotent ES cell-like state. Nature. 448: 318–324
(Scientists have discovered that there are a large number of internal brain structures, which work together with the input and output brain structures to form fleeting images in the mind. Using these images, we learn to interpret input signals, process them, and formulate output responses in a deliberate, conscious, way.)
Since the brain is extremely fragile and difficult to access without risking further damage, imaging techniques are used frequently as a noninvasive method of visualizing the brain’s structure and activity. Today's technology provides many useful tools for studying the brain. But even with our highest technology out there we do not know everything definitely. We do have fallbacks at times and these fallbacks can lead to serious problems.
The purpose of this paper to examine the evolution of the human brain that distinguishes them from other species based on the traits that humans possess: such as language, emotional complexity and consciousness. The significance of traits are due to adaptations in humans to promote the survival of our ancestors. Professor Hamilton (2012) discusses that the evolution of the human brain starts with the idea of the Triune brain, proposed by MacLean, whereby the human brain is made up of three parts: Reptilian, Paleo-mammalian, and Neo-mammalian. Animals with the neo-mammalian brain have a more complex brain compared to the other parts, since this is where the neocortex evolved. Humans essentially have this higher brain function which is responsible for our ability to think, make decisions, promote agency, and the ability to relate with each other. This concept fits into the evolutionary process since it shows how the complex the brain has become through evolutionary processes. In essence, as humans, we “have a rich, evidence-based understanding of our behavior that can lead us to plan to be ‘better’ or ‘more successful’ people” according to Professor Hamilton (2012). Thus, shows how evolution plays a significance in understanding human behavior and comparing humans with other species.
Sperry, R. W. (1982, September 24). Some Effects of Disconnecting the Cerebral Hemispheres. Science Megazine, 217, 1223-1226.
Saha, K, & Jaenisch, R, 2009. Technical Challenges in Using Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells to Model Disease. Cell Stem Cell, 5, 584-595.
could be modified or expanded upon given what has been learned about the brain through
The brain is a mystifying tissue that controls our bodies, conducting all the energy needed to make conscious and unconscious actions. This pink blob had always caught my attention during my earlier years and my interest had only spiked when my little brother became a victim of a horrible fall. The experience of seeing his brain deteriorate at such a fast pace awoke a passion and desire to learn more about the functions and genetic makeup of the incredibly powerful pink squishy tissue in our heads. By the time I was 13, I knew I definitely wanted to become a neurosurgeon to help study the dark and unexplored layers of the brain.
[online] Available at: http://www.livescience.com/22665-nervous system.html [Accessed: 1 Oct 2013]. Reece, J. 2012. The. Campbell biology. San Francisco, CA. -.
"Patterns of activity in small, more primitive areas of the brain are recapitulated in larger, more advanced parts," Sutton says. "This means that nature did not have to develop new rules of operation for different levels of the brain from small clusters of cells to large systems."
People change as they get older throughout their life. Our brain can function the way we act and the way we feel. It’s like a nucleus, the control center of the system. The brain is usually influenced by the surrounding environment and the experience that people get. That is what leads to knowledge, new invention, and the process of thinking. We keep what we know and learn inside our thoughts. The memorizing and the daily functions that the brain does is what makes us human. Helping us through challenges, making good decisions, and thinking.