Almost as alive
China has created an artificial neuron capable of reading chemical signals of the brain
Stepan Ikaev, Hi-tech+
A group of scientists from Nanjing University in China has designed an artificial neuron capable of interacting with the neurotransmitter dopamine. A series of experiments on rats has shown that this neuron can both secrete and receive dopamine together with the natural neurons of animals. The solution will be useful when developing brain-computer interfaces that will accurately read all signals in the human body — both electrical and chemical.
As the scientists explained, most of the modern interfaces created to study brain signals measure simple electrical signals in neurons. Such systems allow computers to collect and decrypt a lot of important data about the body, but the bulk of the information remains hidden in encoded neurotransmitters — chemicals like dopamine, which are used by neurons to send messages to each other. The other day, Chinese scientists announced that they had figured out how to "pull out" these hidden data from dopamine.
"The native language of the brain is chemical, but all modern brain—machine interfaces use an electric language. Therefore, we have developed an artificial neuron to duplicate the way a real neuron communicates," explained Benghui Hu, the head of the study.
The neuron consists of a sensor made of graphene and an electrode made of carbon nanotubes, which can detect when dopamine is released, Techxplore reports. If the sensor detects enough, a component called a memristor triggers the release of more dopamine at the other end through a heat-activated hydrogel.
Hu and his team have shown that the neuron is able to both send and receive dopamine signals by interacting with rat brain cells. Moreover, it is able to activate the animal's muscles through the sciatic nerve and move the robotic arm — without electrical signals. This discovery promises to simplify the design of extremely precise machines that interact with the human body and brain.
"In fact, this technology has great potential for expansion into more complex systems. With its help, you can do a lot of cool new things," said Joeri van de Burgt from Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands, which also participated in the study.
Article by Wang et al. A chemically mediated artificial neuron is published in the journal Nature Electronics – VM.
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru