Health & Medicine
Impaired Vision Can Be Restored By Regrowing Brain Cells
Rhea
First Posted: Jul 12, 2016 06:52 AM EDT
Impaired vision can be restored, a new study claimed. The findings were generated from a study of blind mice, but it is hoped that these can eventually be applied on humans as well.
According to the Scientific American, researchers at the Stanford University found that mammalian brain cells can be restored. Brain cells linked to vision can still be regrown and made functional again.This goes against traditional notion that this is not possible to do.
The work was done on visually impaired mice and with such promising results, it is hoped that humans one day will also benefit from this revelation. The researchers suggest that impairments such as glaucoma, Alzheimer's disease, as well as spinal cord injuries can be "repaired."
The researchers are also very optimistic, saying that even though only 5% of the damaged retinal ganglion cells of the visually impaired mice grew back, this was enough to create a difference in how the mice see things. "The brain is very good at coping with deprived inputs," says Andrew Huberman, the Stanford neurobiologist who led the work. "The study also supports the idea that we may not need to regenerate every neuron in a system to get meaningful recovery."
Apart from the researchers,initial readers who came by the study also lauded the findings and believe these to be promising for humans. Nature Neuroscience published some of the positive things that the researchers are saying.
Among the comments, Don Zack's comment is worth noting.
Zack is a professor of ophthalmology at Johns Hopkins University, and not part of the research done. "I think it's a significant step forward toward getting to the point where we really can regenerate optic nerves," he said. He also described this as "one more indication that it may be possible to bring that ability back in humans."
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First Posted: Jul 12, 2016 06:52 AM EDT
Impaired vision can be restored, a new study claimed. The findings were generated from a study of blind mice, but it is hoped that these can eventually be applied on humans as well.
According to the Scientific American, researchers at the Stanford University found that mammalian brain cells can be restored. Brain cells linked to vision can still be regrown and made functional again.This goes against traditional notion that this is not possible to do.
The work was done on visually impaired mice and with such promising results, it is hoped that humans one day will also benefit from this revelation. The researchers suggest that impairments such as glaucoma, Alzheimer's disease, as well as spinal cord injuries can be "repaired."
The researchers are also very optimistic, saying that even though only 5% of the damaged retinal ganglion cells of the visually impaired mice grew back, this was enough to create a difference in how the mice see things. "The brain is very good at coping with deprived inputs," says Andrew Huberman, the Stanford neurobiologist who led the work. "The study also supports the idea that we may not need to regenerate every neuron in a system to get meaningful recovery."
Apart from the researchers,initial readers who came by the study also lauded the findings and believe these to be promising for humans. Nature Neuroscience published some of the positive things that the researchers are saying.
Among the comments, Don Zack's comment is worth noting.
Zack is a professor of ophthalmology at Johns Hopkins University, and not part of the research done. "I think it's a significant step forward toward getting to the point where we really can regenerate optic nerves," he said. He also described this as "one more indication that it may be possible to bring that ability back in humans."
See Now: NASA's Juno Spacecraft's Rendezvous With Jupiter's Mammoth Cyclone