Genetic Modification in Recent Days!

As you all know, the research in the field of genetic engineering can never be confined and contained, given the challenging and esoteric human DNA. With the merry speed of time, the research in this field has been gyrating, proliferating, and widening in geometric proportions. If the scientists laid the foundation of ontogenetic in last decade, these days they have come forward with sonogenetics. In the former research the scientists used light to change cell structure while in the latter they use sound waves to observe the change in brain cells. Once again, the small step that was taken with Dolly the Sheep has transformed into a giant leap. The drawback with the former was that this technique used invasive technology to create effect on the neurons, but the latter is non-invasive and non-surgical.

So, what is remarkable with these sonogenetics? Well, this revolutionary research helps the scientists to control neural activity. The technique worked conductively to control the movements of nematode worms, and now experiments are being conducted on mammalian blood, modelled upon mice. The amplified ultrasound waves have successfully made the neurons respond remarkably. According to Sreekanth Chalasani, a molecular neurobiologist at the Salk Institute, “this study delineates how an engineered auditory-sensing protein can cause mammalian cells to sense ultrasound stimulation.” The ultrasound has the potential to shift the outer membrane of cells without affecting the inner membrane. Through this technique, the neuroscientists can add space between the membranes, possibly making the cells more electrically active. It is expected that sonogenetics will be used for non-invasive therapies in deep issues found in human guts, kidneys, bladder and liver.

Currently, sonogenetics is being used on the human brain with a view to making an impact on the patients suffering from depression related to Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease and Parkinson’s disease. The neuroscientists are performing experiments on the cluster of neurons in the human neck that carries all the information to and from the brain, and very soon with the help of both light and ultrasound, the researcher will be able to target the malignant neurons responsible for seizures, PTSD and depression. Gone are the days of cloning! It is time for creating something better and unique.

#research#biology#biochemistry#biotechnology

Citations:

Stimulating neurons with sound. The Scientist Magazine®. (n.d.). Retrieved April 23, 2023, from https://lnkd.in/dbv7Tv49