Stories
Slash Boxes
Comments

SoylentNews is people

posted by mrpg on Thursday December 21 2017, @03:36AM   Printer-friendly
from the smart dept.

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) scientists and engineers have developed a "brain-on-a-chip" device aimed at testing and predicting the effects of biological and chemical agents, disease or pharmaceutical drugs on the brain over time without the need for human or animal subjects.

The device, part of the Lab's iCHIP (in-vitro Chip-Based Human Investigational Platform) project, simulates the central nervous system by recording neural activity from multiple brain cell types deposited and grown onto microelectrode arrays. The platform, described in the journal PLOS One, could help scientists understand how brain cells connect and interact, combat brain disorders, determine how soldiers are affected by exposure to chemical and biological weapons and develop antidotes to counteract those effects.

"While we're not close to the point where we can fully recapitulate a brain outside of the body, this is an important step in terms of increasing complexity of these devices and moving in the right direction," said co-lead author and LLNL research engineer Dave Soscia. "The idea is that eventually the community gets to a point where people are confident enough in the devices that the effects they see from putting chemicals or pharmaceutical drugs into the platform environment are similar to the results we would see in the human body."

Controlled placement of multiple CNS cell populations to create complex neuronal cultures (open, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0188146) (DX)

'Brain-on-a-chip' to test effects of biological and chemical agents, develop countermeasures


Original Submission

 
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.
Display Options Threshold/Breakthrough Mark All as Read Mark All as Unread
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
  • (Score: 3, Funny) by Some call me Tim on Thursday December 21 2017, @04:32AM

    by Some call me Tim (5819) on Thursday December 21 2017, @04:32AM (#612696)

    Brazing on a chip? That's a really tiny welder!
    Laughing with you, not at you ;-)

    --
    Questioning science is how you do science!
    Starting Score:    1  point
    Moderation   +1  
       Funny=1, Total=1
    Extra 'Funny' Modifier   0  
    Karma-Bonus Modifier   +1  

    Total Score:   3