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 The tiny implant, smaller than the width of a human hair, let the
scientists determine the path a mouse walks using a remote control
to inject drugs and shine lights on neurons inside the brain.
Neuroscientists have until now been limited to injecting drugs
through larger tubes and delivering photostimulation through
fiber-optic cables, both of which require surgery that can damage
the brain and restrict an animal's natural movements.
The optofluidic implant developed by the team from Washington
University School of Medicine and the University of Illinois was
found to damage and displace much less brain tissue than the metal
tubes, or cannulas, scientists typically use to inject drugs.
The device is mounted to the head of the mouse and is powered by a
small battery, removing the need for it to be wired, and contains
tiny reservoirs filled with the drugs to be administered during
tests.
In one such experiment, mice were made to walk in circles after a
drug that mimics morphine was injected into the region of the
mouse's brain that controls motivation and addiction.
In other tests the scientists used a technique known as
optogenetics, where mice have been modified so that their neurons
are lights sensitive, to stimulate the mice's brain cells with
miniature LEDs. The test subjects were made to stay on one side of a
cage by remotely making the implant shine pulses of light on the
specific cells. The mice were about three feet away from the remote
antenna during the experiments.
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The research, published recently in scientific journal Cell, could
lead to the development of more minimally invasive probes to treat
neurological disorders including stress, depression, addiction, and
pain.
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