You might be wondering what a mouse perched on a circular stage in a 360-degree virtual reality dome might have to do with dementia, but it’s not because your brain is turning based on your visual environment. Studying the ways in which we adjust provides insight into what happens when neurodegeneration causes people to feel lost in familiar settings.
Scientists at McGill University used state-of-the-art neuron mapping technology to study the firing of head-direction (HD) cells in mice. They identified a phenomenon they termed ‘network gain,’ in which the brain’s internal compass resets after mice become disoriented.
“It’s as if the brain had a mechanism to implement a reset button, allowing you to quickly change the direction of your internal compass in confusing situations,” said study co-lead author and former McGill University student. said Zaki Ajabi of Harvard University.
Discovered only in rats in 1983, HD cells are thought to be common to all mammals. These neurons are located in several brain regions and change their firing rate based on head movements. Only recent advances in neuronal recording techniques have enabled researchers to adequately study the behavior of these cells. This allowed researchers to see how her HD cells supported the brain’s ability to reorient after a change in environment.
“Neuroscience research has witnessed a technological revolution in the last decade, allowing us to ask and answer questions that we could not have dreamed of just a few years ago. Douglas Research Center.
New insights into the complex and understudied parts of the brain will help us understand how the brain readjusts in changing environments, and how this process plays a role in degenerative neurological disorders such as dementia, especially Alzheimer’s disease. I’ll let you know what doesn’t work.
“One of the first self-reported cognitive symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease is people becoming disoriented and lost, even in familiar surroundings,” says Brandon. Early detection of neurodegeneration and even treatment of this aspect.
The researchers added that even though animals were exposed to unnatural visual experiences, they were related to human life experiences, and according to Ajabi, “Virtual reality systems can easily control our sense of orientation. I may finally explain how it can be done.”
“This study is a beautiful example of how combining experimental and computational approaches can improve our understanding of the brain activity that drives behavior,” said co-author and computational neuroscientist at the University of Texas at Austin. said Xue-Xin Wei, an assistant professor at the school.
The study was published in a journal Nature.
Source: McGill University
