Lifeboat Foundation: Safeguarding Humanity
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Category: neuroscience – Page 764

A fun piece: The Most Amazing Things About Animal Consciousness

“We patronize [the animals] for their incompleteness, for their tragic fate of having taken form so far below ourselves. And therein we err, and greatly err.” Animals diverge from us in wonderfully creative ways. Did you know dogs have magnetotactic abilities and prefer to relieve themselves along a north-south axis? And dolphins echolocation allows them to see X-ray-like images & “tell” other dolphins what they’ve seen without our clumsy, 1-word-at-a-time process. Instead, they create a visual picture of what they saw in the minds of other dolphins, perhaps even “bolding” aspects they want to emphasize.

https://www.robertlanza.com/the-Most-Amazing-Things-About-Animal-Consciousness/

Theory of Mind in Humans and Machines

To promote an ethical approach in human-machine interaction.

The theory of mind is about recognizing other minds, comprehend emotions, understand intentions, and predict behaviors that are essential for intelligent social interaction. The capability to detect others’ minds is critical to human cognition and social interaction. It allows us to build relationships and work cooperatively to achieve common goals.

Research has shown that having a sophisticated theory of mind may be a large part of why humans have cognitive skills. This ability is so important that when it is disrupted, as we see in some cases of autism, vital cerebral functions like language learning and imagination become impaired.

So, understanding the theory of mind helps us to anticipate how others might behave in a particular condition. Completely understanding the theory of mind is a complex task indeed.

Neuroscientists Unveil Wiring Diagram Containing 200,000 Cells and Nearly Half Billion Connections in Tiny Piece of a Mouse’s Brain

Summary: Researchers have compiled a new, highly detailed 3D brain map that captures the shapes and activity of neurons in the visual neocortex of mice. The map is freely available for neuroscience researchers and artificial intelligence specialists to utilize.

Source: Allen Institute

Researchers from the University of Reading, in the UK, are using drones to give clouds an electrical charge, which could help increase rainfall in water-stressed regions.

Researchers identify a cellular defect common to familial and sporadic forms of ALS

This study builds on an earlier paper by the Rothstein lab that looked at the most common genetic cause of ALS, a mutation in the C9orf72 gene (also referred to as the “C9 mutation”). There, they showed that the C9 mutation produced defects in a structure called the nuclear pore that is responsible for moving proteins and other molecules in and out of the nucleus of cells.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a rapidly progressive and fatal degenerative disease affecting the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord responsible for controlling voluntary muscle movement. “Sporadic” or non-inherited ALS, accounts for roughly 90% percent of cases, and 10% of cases are due to known genetic mutations. By studying lab-grown neurons derived from skin or blood cells from 10 normal controls, eight with an ALS causing mutation, and 17 with non-inherited ALS, researchers have found a possible starting point for the dysfunction that causes the disease. The study, which was published in Science Translational Medicine, was funded in part by the National Institute for Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), part of the National Institutes of Health.

Using a library of ALS patient-derived , the research team led by Jeffrey Rothstein, M.D., Ph.D., at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, developed induced (iPSC)-derived neurons from the patients’ cultured cells to discover a common defect regardless of whether the cell came from persons with inherited or non-inherited ALS. They report that in ALS nerve cells, there is an accumulation of a protein called CHMP7 in the nucleus of cultured nerve cells as well as in ALS samples from the brain region that controls movement. Treatments that decrease the amount of CHMP7 in the cultured cells prevented a series of abnormalities that are characteristic of ALS.

“There is considerable interest in identifying new therapeutic targets for ALS, particularly for the sporadic form of the disorder,” said Amelie Gubitz, Ph.D., program director, NINDS. “Gene-targeting strategies like the one shown here now allow us to move from biological discovery straight to therapy development.”

FDA clears Synchron’s brain-computer interface device for human trials

A company that makes an implantable brain-computer interface (BCI) has been given the go-ahead by the Food and Drug Administration to run a clinical trial with human patients. Synchron plans to start an early feasibility study of its Stentrode implant later this year at Mount Sinai Hospital, New York with six subjects. The company said it will assess the device’s “safety and efficacy in patients with severe paralysis.” https://www.engadget.com/fda-brain-computer-interface-clinic…ml?src=rss

A company that makes an implantable has been given the go-ahead by the Food and Drug Administration to run a clinical trial with human patients. Synchron plans to start an early feasibility study of its Stentrode implant later this year at Mount Sinai Hospital, New York with six subjects. The company said it will assess the device’s “safety and efficacy in patients with severe paralysis.”

Synchron received the FDA’s green light ahead of competitors like Elon Musk’s. Before such companies can sell BCIs commercially in the US, they need to prove that the devices work and are safe. The FDA will provide guidance for trials of BCI devices for patients with paralysis or amputation during a webinar on Thursday.

Another clinical trial of Stentrode is underway in Australia. Four patients have received the implant, which is being used “for data transfer from motor cortex to control digital devices,” Synchron said. According to data published in the Journal of NeuroInterventional Surgery, two of the patients were able to control their computer with their thoughts. They completed work-related tasks, sent text messages and emails and did online banking and shopping.

This 20-person biotech firm just beat Elon Musk’s Neuralink in getting the OK to test brain chip implants in humans with paralysis

Synchron has beat rival Neuralink to human trials of its “implantable brain computer interface.”

The chip will be studied in six patients later this year as a possible aid for paralyzed people.

Elon Musk previously used Neuralink’s chip in a monkey, which then played video games with its mind.

Synchron beat out rival Neuralink, led by Elon Musk, to get the FDA go-ahead for human trials of a chip implant that makes a brain-computer interface.

New Research Finds Children With Autism Have a Distinctive Gut Microbiome

Several Clostridium species enriched in children with autism closely interacted with each other and formed a connected group. Clostridia species have been linked with autism via the production of clostridial toxins which can damage the central nervous system, point out the researchers.

Significantly fewer gut bugs linked to neurotransmitter activity.

Children with autism seem to have a distinctive and underdeveloped range and volume of gut bacteria (microbiome) that isn’t related to their diet, suggests a small study published online in the journal Gut.

They have significantly fewer bacteria linked to neurotransmitter activity and 5 species of bacteria that aren’t typically found in the guts of children without the condition, suggesting that there may be a characteristic microbial profile for autism, which may pave the way for treatment early on, say the researchers.

Unfolding the hippocampus

A technique developed at Western University to visually iron out the wrinkles and folds in one region of the brain may provide researchers a more accurate picture to understand brain disorders.

hippocampus_inset.jpg

The hippocampus is a region of the brain often looked at by clinicians and researchers for clues to understand disease progression and response to treatment for brain disorders. Made up of two seahorse-shaped brain structures, the hippocampus is located at the centre of the brain and plays an important role in memory formation.

It is one of the first regions of the brain to show damage from Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases and is implicated in epilepsy and major depressive disorder. The anatomy of the hippocampus differs greatly from person to person, specifically when looking at the way that it folds in on itself.

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