Like most illegal drugs, cocaine is highly addictive. Recent studies show that drug dependence can be controlled by acting on the brain.
In experiments with rats, scientists at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Ernest Gallo Clinic, and the University of California Research Center in San Francisco found that cocaine addiction can be turned on and off through laser irradiation of the cerebral cortex.
Scientists began the experiment by introducing photosensitive proteins, known as rhodopsins, into rat prefrontal cortex neurons. Stimulation of the electrical activity of neurons was performed using laser light, which was supplied to the rodent's brain through implanted fiber optic cables. By controlling the impulse activity of neurons, the researchers were able to significantly weaken the cocaine dependence in rats.
Conversely, the suppression of neuronal activity led experimental subjects to seek a new dose. Thus, drug addicts, like rats, suffer from low activity of the prefrontal region of the cerebral cortex.
But this does not mean that addicts will be irradiated with a laser. The same effect can be achieved by transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) by acting on the cerebral cortex with short magnetic pulses through the skull.
In the short term, scientists plan to start human trials. The full text of the study was published in the latest edition of the scientific journal Nature.
In the meantime, New York City police are taking non-standard measures to combat the theft of drugs containing narcotic substances.
The article is based on materials .
Comments
Post a Comment