Sunday, February 26, 2012

An 'off' switch for pain

Summary: The notion of a pain switch is an alluring idea, but is it realistic? Well, chemists at LMU Munich, in collaboration with colleagues in Berkeley and Bordeaux, have now shown in laboratory experiments that it is possible to inhibit the activity of pain-sensitive neurons using an agent that acts as a photosensitive switch. For the LMU researchers, the method primarily represents a valuable tool for probing the neurobiology of pain. (Nature Methods, 19.02.2012)

Critic: Interesting

Impact: Less pain

Reference: http://www.biologynews.net/archives/2012/02/22/an_off_switch_for_pain.html

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