Decoding the Worm

Have you ever looked at a worm and think "Wow, I would love to know what makes that little thing work"? There's a very good chance that you have not, but scientists at the Research Institute of Molecular Pathology (IMP) in Vienna did just that and uncovered one of neuroscience's unknown questions.
This is the roundworm Caenorhabditis elegans. Manuel Zimmer and his team studied the brain activity of these worms and tracked how their isolated neurons work together as a group. By combining two different scientific technologies. The first on would be using "3D microscopy techniques to simultaneously and rapidly measure different regions of the brain" and the second would be "worms genetically engineered with a fluorescent protein that caused the worm’s neurons to flash when they were active." ("Vienna neuroscientists decode the brain activity of the worm," 2015) By observing the animals' reactions to trying to find food, Zimmer and his team "saw that most of the neurons are constantly active and coordinate with each other" acting as "an ensemble”, explains postdoctoral scientist Saul Kato. Since the C. elegans were debilitated the neurons' results reflected intentions instead of the physical act of finding food. ("Vienna neuroscientists decode the brain activity of the worm," 2015) Set up for freely moving worms, a different technique of microscopy enabled the scientists to identify the neurons that commence the worm's movement. It is found that there is "a direct correlation between the activity of certain networks and the impulse for movements." ("Vienna neuroscientists decode the brain activity of the worm," 2015) These activities represent short movements as well as their assembly into longer lasting behavioral strategies, like searching for food. The fact that these simple life forms' brains represent basic principles of brain function, even though the worm is only distantly related to mammals, could unlock some very important unanswered questions in the area of neurobiology. ("Vienna neuroscientists decode the brain activity of the worm," 2015)
Vienna neuroscientists decode the brain activity of the worm. (2015, October 15). Retrieved November 1, 2015.

Cells Healing Parkinson's

Elena Batrakova and other researchers at the University of North Carolina have found a potential treatment for Parkinson’s disease, GDNF therapy. This technique utilizes intelligent brain cells that “deliver a healing protein” and “[teach] neurons to begin making the protein for themselves.” (Etchison, 2015) As of now, there are only therapies designed to address the quality of life held by those living with Parkinson’s, but no treatments to reverse its course. However, Batrakova says that “studies have shown that delivering neurotrophic factor to the brain not only promotes the survival of neurons but also reverses the progression of Parkinson’s disease.” (Etchison, 2015) For the GDNF therapy to be successful the treatment must be delivered correctly to the brain’s receptors. By using immune cells, the natural defenses of the body are avoided and allow “repurposed macrophages” to “penetrate the blood-brain barrier, something most medicines cannot do.” (Etchison, 2015) Exosomes, tiny bubbles in the brain, are made that contain GDNF and are later released to deliver the proton’s to the brain’s neurons. “By teaching immune system cells to make this protective protein, we harness the natural systems of the body to combat degenerative conditions like Parkinson’s disease,” Batrakova said. (Etchison, 2015)

Etchison, D. (2015, September 10). UNC Smart Cells Teach Neurons Damaged by Parkinson's to Heal Themselves - UNC News. Retrieved October 19, 2015.

Dark Matter

It's invisible and hard to find, but it makes up 80% of our universe.  Dark matter cannot be seen by light, as other matter.  Scientists are making headway in mapping dark matter by analyzing the chaotic galaxies.

Dark matter was first identified in the 1930's by  Fritz Zwicky, when he observed the movements of the galaxies were not matching up with the amount of mass that could be seen.  In 2006 the 'Bullet cluster' was observed by astronomers.  The 'Bullet cluster' was made up of 2 clusters of galaxies that were colliding with each other.  The clusters appeared to have a region around each of them, and when measured using gravitational lensing, this region was found to have a large amount of mass.  Using what is known as this weak gravitational lensing, the identification and measurement of dark matter because possible. (Francis, 2014)

The next step that astronomers took was in finding a way to map all of the locations of dark matter.  Princeton University astronomers Neta Bahcall and Andrea Kulier used the weak lensing process to took a weak lensing census of 132,473 galaxy groups and clusters, all within a well-defined patch of the sky but at a range of distances from the Milky Way. (Francis, 2014)

Cited Works: Francis, M. (2014, July 27). Dark matter makes up 80% of the Universe—but where is it all? Retrieved September 20, 2015.

Joni Mitchell Was Right.

In 1969, the immortal words of Joni Mitchell's "Woodstock" were sang, making a statement that astronomers and biologists would later come to agree with. We really are stardust, that is to say, "everything in the universe and on Earth originated from stardust" (Worrall, 2015). In the beginning, there was just a bit of helium, some hydrogen, and a small amount of anything else coming from the decaying stars of our universe. Though there is not any helium in our bodies, it was believed to be "built into carbon, nitrogen and oxygen, iron and sulfur—everything we're made of" (Worall, 2015) Stars could be seen as elemental converters, taking one thing and switching it to another useful substance.

PHOTOGRAPH BY NASA, JPL-CALTECH, UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN
Works Cited:Worrall PUBLISHED January 28, 2015, S. (2015, January 28). We Are Stardust-Literally. Retrieved September 6, 2015.

Autism & Micro Movements

Children with autism and their parents often share small abnormal movement patterns that are much too minuscule to recognize with just the naked eye. Although those that are considered to be on the autism spectrum are commonly known to have problems with motor skills, the less noticeable movements, or micro movements, analyzed in the study done by the Society for Neuroscience cannot be intentionally suppressed. Thirty people with autism (ages ranging from 10 to 30 years old), twenty-one parents of children with autism, and eight neurotypical adults were told to point at and reach out to a target on a screen approximately 100 times in a row to test the micro movements necessary in their actions. All subjects showed signs of peripheral spikes, or p-spikes, which are small increases in speed in between actions, but could be set into categories. P-spikes of those with autism were haphazardly dispersed while, at the same time, most of the parents of autistic children possessed movements resembling their offspring's. Which means that these tests could possibly contribute toward early recognition and diagnosis of autism, though it would have to be researched more because neurotypical 3 to 5 year olds have the same amount and randomness of the p-spikes. Micro movements could be used in clinical trials to assess a drug's capability, along with being used for early intervention. (Eck, 2014)

Photo Credit:  Jonathan Cohen / Flickr (CC BY-NC 2.0)

Works Cited: Eck, A. (2014, November 17). Children with Autism May Have Inherited Abnormal “Micro-Movement” Patterns. Retrieved August 23, 2015.