NewScienstist, Helen Thomson, 11
November 2014
 |
Wirelessly
linked to cells in a mouse (Image: Victor Habbick
Visions/Science Photo
Library)
|
Could a
futuristic society of humans with the power to control their own biological
functions ever become reality?
It's not as
out there as it sounds, now the technical foundations have been laid.
Researchers have created a link between thoughts and cells, allowing people to
switch on genes in mice using just their thoughts.
"We
wanted to be able to use brainwaves to control genes. It's the first time
anyone has linked synthetic biology and the mind," says Martin Fussenegger, a bioengineer at ETH Zurich in Basel, Switzerland, who led the
team behind the work.
They hope
to use the technology to help people who are "locked-in" – that is,
fully conscious but unable to move or speak – to do things like self-administer
pain medication. It might also be able to help people with epilepsy control
their seizures.
In theory,
the technology could be used for non-medical purposes, too. For example, we
could give ourselves a hormone burst on demand, much like in the Culture – Iain M. Banks's utopian society, where people are able to secrete hormones and other
chemicals to change their mood.
Mouse meet
man
Fussenegger's
team started by inserting a light-responsive gene into human kidney cells in a
dish. The gene is activated, or expressed, when exposed to infrared light. The
cells were engineered so that when the gene activated, it caused a cascade of
chemical reactions leading to the expression of another gene – the one the team
wanted to switch on.
Next, they
put the cells into an implant about the size of a 10-pence piece or a US
quarter, alongside an infrared LED that could be controlled wirelessly. The
implant was inserted under the skin of a mouse. A semi-permeable membrane
allowed vital nutrients from the animal's blood supply to reach the cells
inside.
With the
mouse part of the experiment prepared, the team turned to the human volunteers.
Eight people, wearing EEG devices that monitored their brainwaves, were taught
how to conjure up different mental states that the device could recognise by
their distinctive brain waves.
The
volunteers were shown meditation techniques to produce a "relaxed"
pattern of brainwaves, and played a computer game to produce patterns that
reflected deep concentration. They also used a technique known as biofeedback,
in which they learned by trial and error to control their thoughts to switch on
a set of lights on a computer.
By linking
the volunteer's EEG device to the wireless LED implant in the mouse, they were
able to switch on the LED using any of the three mental states. This activated
the light-responsive gene in the kidney cells, which, in turn, led to the
activation of the target gene. A human protein was produced that passed through
the implant's membrane and into the rodent's bloodstream, where it could be
detected. "We picked a protein that made an enzyme that was easy to
identify in the mouse as a proof of concept, but essentially we think we could
switch on any target gene we liked," says Fussenegger.
Behaviour
controlled
The
possibilities this could open up extend as far as your imagination. For
example, the implant cells could produce hormones, so how about giving yourself
a burst of oxytocin before a stressful social event – just by concentrating on
a computer game?
That's
possible in principle, Fussenegger says, but for now his team is focused on
creating a device to help people who are locked-in, or those with chronic pain,
medicate themselves. For people with epilepsy, a similar device could
potentially pick up the specific electrical patterns that appear in the brain
just before a seizure. It might be possible to engineer cells to react to this
pattern and release drugs to lessen the seizure.
While the
applications are futuristic, the work itself is very interesting, says Florian
Wurm, head of cellular biotechnology at EPFL in Lausanne, Switzerland. He says
it shows for the first time that you can link together two really important
ideas – synthetic biology and mind control.
"But
we have to consider the ethical and legal challenges associated with this kind
of technology," Wurm says. "The moment you can control genes by
thought you might be able to interfere with human behaviour, perhaps against
someone's wishes." He doesn't want to paint a negative picture, though.
"We shouldn't close our eyes to these inventions. It's not going to be
made into a medical device any time soon but it's interesting to consider who
it could help."
Fussenegger
says he would like to start a clinical trial within 10 years.
Journal
reference: Nature Communications, DOI: 10.1038/ncomms6392
This
article will appear in print under the headline "Genes controlled by human
thought"
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