Have forgotten researching half brain - NRK

class=”publish-date” title=”10.09.2013, Cl. 09.19.”> Published 10.09.2013, at. 09.19.

You must be very curious about the brain to have heard of neurons, these long nerve cells that uses electrical impulses to create memories, decisions and awareness. But what do you know about glia?

Although the majority of brain cells are actually different types of these glia, we know surprisingly little about what they are doing, argues professor of neuroscience R. Douglas Fields in this week’s issue of Nature .

Neuro Science has more or less neglected glial cells since they were discovered and dismissed as connective tissue once the nineteenth century, writes professor.

Although some groups have worked with glia, this work is insignificant compared to the huge focus on the famous neurons.

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Can play greater role

But research in recent years have suggested that glial cells may play a much larger role than expected for both brain functions such as memory and for diseases such as Alzheimer’s, depression and schizophrenia.

And now believes Fields at the stemoderlige treatment of glia must stop. If we are to understand how memories, thoughts and consciousness work, we study the glia also he writes in Nature .

Professor Gaute Einevoll UMB agree in.

– Yes, I think I’m right. There are more glial cells than neurons in the brain, and they are there for a reason.

– On the other hand, we can not turn it completely upside down and say that there are glial cells that are the key to everything. The rapid information processing done by neurons, says Einevoll, who has researched both neurons and glia.

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Stock memories

Glial cells and neurons are tightly interwoven within the brain, and all cell types are talking to each other.

Fields’ own research suggests that glia can detect neuronal activity and control it. Other studies have pointed to the cells plays a role in memory formation.

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fact, there are good reasons to suspect that glial cells may be just as suitable as neurons in some of the processes related to thought and understanding, the professor writes in Nature. It has something to do with the way the various cells communicate.

While neurons send lightning-fast electrical impulses, glial cells communicate only by separating chemical neurotransmitters. It goes much slower. But in some cases this may be advantageous, according to Fields.

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Human glia

Learning or experience of emotion is often processes that take place over hours, days and weeks, not in milliseconds, he writes and speculates further:

Maybe just the human glial cells some of what separates us from the animals?

A study from 2013 show that astrocytes – a special type of glial cells – in humans is significantly different from the corresponding cells of other animals. And mice given a portion of their astrocytes replaced with human variant, learned faster, writes Fields.

Poor interaction

Professor Menno Witter from the Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience at NTNU think Fields has a point.

– There is very compelling evidence that these cells play important roles in brain function in a broad sense, he writes in an email to forskning.no.

But there are also a number of groups working with glia today. Now it’s up to these scientists to convince the rest of the field about how important they are, says neuroscientist Witter, which nevertheless points out that this can be a challenge.

When it comes to the interaction between the research groups who are interested in neurons and glia that study, there is certainly room for improvement, he writes.

It may also be that this is why Fields posts in Nature.

Not

electric

The comment comes on the occasion of the U.S. initiative BRAIN – Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies, as President Obama announced in April.

The goal of the initiative is to map the brains of animals, such as humans. And some researchers have proposed to concentrate on measuring the electrical signals from as many neurons.

– It is enough for one-sided. We must also find out more about glia and how they interact with neurons, says Einevoll from UMB, who works in a similar mammoth project in Europe – Human Brain Project.

He says that new techniques have now made this possible.

We understand little

Einevoll mean just glia lack of electrical signals is one of the reasons that these cells have received less attention from researchers.

– It is much easier to measure electrical signals than chemical. And it has long been possible to connect an electric impulses measured from neurons to stimuli or cognitive processes. This is difficult with glial cells, he said.

– But now we have new measurement techniques that allow you can also see activity in glial cells.

And so will the future show how the different parts of the brain actually works.

– Today we know so little anyway, although how neurons work, says Einevoll.

– We understand reasonably well how a cell works, but little of how neurons work together in networks. Then it’s hard to say how important all the different components of the brain.