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In an effort to better understand the region of the brain linked to Alzheimer's disease, American scientists have created what they believe to be the most detailed atlas of the brain's memory bank, the # 39; hippocampus.
Created with the help of fluorescent tracers and 3D animation, the map presents in great detail the structures, nerve connections and functions of the hippocampus, according to the study published in the Nature Neuroscience review.
"Like a new atlas, we have constructed the most detailed schematic of the hippocampus to date," said lead author of the study, Michael Bienkowski of the Keck School of Medicine's University of Southern California.
Human brain. pixabay
"With a better map, we can see each region and its operation.A better map is a resource that scientists can use to better understand the hippocampus and how its degeneration causes disease," said Bienkowski.
The human hippocampus lies at the base of the brain and is shaped like a hippocampus. It stores memories, helps regulate emotions and guides navigation by spatial processing.
It is the first part of the brain altered by Alzheimer's disease and the degeneration of the hippocampus can cause epilepsy and other diseases.
In this case, the scientists worked on a mouse brain because it is organized in the same way as a human brain.
Scientists can use the new map of the hippocampus to administer genetically targeted drugs to specific neurons producing fewer side effects, said lead author, Hong-Wei Dong, a professor of neurology at l & # 39; USC.
Scientists have long known the basic architecture of the hippocampus in four parts.
But with the new map, scientists can show their subregions and how nerve cells interact across the structure.
"This completely changes our understanding by combining a wiring diagram with the gene expression of the mouse hippocampus.We see that it does different things, and it gives us a new way of understanding how it all works together. impact, "said Bienkowski.
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