[ad_1]
Photo: Archive
2001.com.ve | EFE
It has been shown that a new cochlear implant based on light restores the auditory responses of a rodent type, which could form the basis of a new generation of omegae. implants that transmit sounds more accurately than traditional devices.
The study provides a proof of concept (which serves to verify that a theory can be exploited in a useful way) that the combination of optical stimulation with genetic manipulation can restore the perception of sound.
led by Christian Wroberl of the German University of Göttingen, he used optogenetics, a method that combines optical and genetic methods, to achieve his experiment published today by Science Translational Medicine .
Worldwide, there are about 360 million people Traditional cochlear implants can regain the ability to hear many of them by stimulating the cells of
However, the ability of these Transducer devices (turning one type of signal into another) in noisy environments can be hindered.
Experts have designed a cochlear implant based on light. The experiments were carried out on adult gerbils (rodents) whose cochlea is greater than that of other rodents and which detects lower frequencies than those of other rodents.
The animals were trained to jump an obstacle after hearing an alarm, then the scientists injected a virus with a gene capable of encoding a light-sensitive ion channel in the cochlea, to allow their neurons in this zone, they were activated by light.
They also implanted in the cochlea of the rodent optical fiber to emit light signals, explains the
Gerbils with this implant jumped the obstacle when the cochlea cells were stimulated with a blue light instead of the alarm, "suggesting that animals have recorded light stimulation as a sound".
In a subsequent test, the authors induced deafness in a group of rodents who were wearing the implant and found that, although these gerbils could no longer hear the alarm, they continued to jump out. Obstacle when they were subjected to optical stimulation. the implant has managed to recover the auditory response in animals. "
2018-07-11
To stay informed, follow our channel on Telegram https://t.me/Diario2001Online
[ad_2]
Source link
