New ways to image and control nerve cells could unlock brain mysteries
Using the methods to target neurons in mice and fruit fly brains may lead to insights
Using laser light, ballooning tissue and innovative genetic tricks, scientists are starting to force brains to give up their secrets.
By mixing and matching powerful advances in microscopy and cell biology, researchers have imaged intricate details of individual nerve cells in fruit flies and mice, and even controlled small groups of nerve cells in living mice.
The techniques, published in two new studies, represent big steps forward for understanding how the brain operates, says molecular neuroscientist Hongkui Zeng of the Allen Institute for Brain Science in Seattle.