NEW YORK: Researchers have perfected a noninvasive “chemogenetic” technique that allows them to switch off a specific behavior in mice – such as voracious eating – and then switch it back on.
The method works by targeting two different cell surface receptors of neurons that are responsible for triggering the specific chemical signals that control brain function and complex behaviors.
When this complex signaling system goes awry, the results can lead to a plethora of diseases, including schizophrenia, depression, Alzheimer’s Disease, Parkinson’s Disease, eating disorders, and epilepsy…