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As part of the scientific initiative announced by Barack Obama, aimed at studying the work of the brain, a project to launch in the United States the study of neural circuits in patients with mental disorders of patients.
US scientists intend to deal with the consequences post-traumatic stress in the military through brain development implants, writes the NPR publication.
Advanced Defense Research Projects Agency (DARPA) officially announced the launch of a science project worth 70 million dollars whose goal is to develop a brain an implant to treat a range of mental disorders, including the number of post-traumatic stress disorder.
The five-year program is expected to allow help cure patients of depression, anxiety and others conditions that are often found among soldiers who fought in Iraq and Afghanistan.
University of California San Francisco Researchers together with the Massachusetts Multidisciplinary Hospital will be work on creating brain implants that will track brain function.
Scientists will begin the study by studying the work of the brain in volunteers with already implanted implants for the treatment of epilepsy or Parkinson’s disease. This will allow researchers to obtain data. directly from the brain, which has never been done before, stated University of California Neurosurgeon San Francisco Eddie Chang.
By tracking the electrical activity of brain cells, researchers will be able to study the work of neural circuits in real time. Due to the fact that many of the volunteers suffer depression, anxiety and other disorders will become possible to find out how these conditions changed certain neural circuits, added Chang. “If we can understand exactly how neural the connection went wrong, we will get a hint how change that, “said the neurosurgeon.
Based on this data, scientists hope to create new types implants that will help in the treatment.
Due to the ability of plasticity, allowing the brain adapt throughout life, an electronic device, stimulating certain brain cells “cure” neural circuits in which “failure” occurred, notes Eddie Chang.
The scientific program is carried out in the framework announced in 2013 President Barack Obama Research Initiatives Human Brain (Brain Research through Innovation in advanced neurotechnologies “).
Brain implants that stimulate the work of neurons are already used in the treatment of patients with Parkinson’s disease and other diseases of the nervous system.
In case of successful study results, brain implants help solve the problem facing the community of veterans. By US Department of Veterans Affairs, 11-20% of war veterans in Iraq and Afghanistan suffer post-traumatic stress upset.
Barack Obama USA
