The brain is more flexible than we thought
Some brain cells can change their nature, despite established scientific beliefs. It has long been thought that nerve cells, once formed, remain unchanged. However, a study by experts from the University of California, Santa Cruz and San Francisco has overturned this view. They found that certain neurons are able to change their type, adapting to their environment. The scientists published the observations in the scientific journal iScience.
For the experiment, scientists used miniature models of the brain created in the laboratory. These 3D structures, called cerebral organoids, help to study the processes occurring in the brain without the need to conduct experiments on living organisms. It turned out that under such conditions it is possible to grow a special type of neurons, which previously could be obtained only in small quantities.
We are talking about the so-called paravalbumin-positive neurons. They play a key role in the plasticity of the brain – the ability to adapt to new conditions. Thanks to these cells, for example, children can learn foreign languages without an accent, and people who have lost one of the senses, more actively develop others. In addition, these neurons are associated with diseases such as autism and schizophrenia, so their study may help in the search for new methods of treatment.
The researchers went further and decided to test whether neurons can change their type under the influence of the environment. To do this, they took another type of cell – somatostatin neurons – and placed them in organoids. Unexpectedly, some of these cells changed and acquired the properties of paravalbumin-positive neurons.
Until now, it was thought that after development was complete, nerve cells retain their “personality” forever. The new experiment shows that under certain conditions they are able to transform. This opens a lot of questions for science: perhaps such processes occur in the real brain, but so far have remained unnoticed.
Now the researchers face the task of finding out exactly what mechanisms trigger the transformation of neurons. They want to study the genes responsible for these changes, as well as to understand how excitatory brain cells affect the fate of inhibitory neurons. If it is possible to find ways to control this process, in the future it may lead to the creation of new methods of treating neurological diseases and even to the improvement of human cognitive abilities.
Published
April, 2025
Duration of reading
2-3 minutes
Category
Science
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