2024-01-24 15:55:00
Scientists from Leoben and Berlin were able to gain insights into how signals are exchanged between neurons in the brain. This new understanding may, among other things, lead to the development of specific drugs related to Alzheimer’s disease.
A research team led by the Leoben physicist Priv.-Doz. Dr. Aleksandar Matković and the neuroscientist Dr. Dragomir Milovanović from the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases in Berlin has succeeded for the first time in directly observing a key property controlling neuronal communication. The result has now been published in the renowned interdisciplinary journal “Nano Letters” and selected by the publisher as the cover of the magazine.
Graphene meets liquid droplets
Communication in the brain depends crucially on the release of messenger molecules when an electrical signal arrives. These messenger molecules are packed into small sacs called synaptic vesicles. Hundreds of synaptic vesicles accumulate at the contact points between neurons. These vesicles have been shown to form dynamic fluid-like components at the synapse, mediated by some of the most abundant neuronal proteins, synapsins. Aleksandar Matković from the Montanuniversität Leoben and Dragomir Milovanović have now discovered that these liquid droplets are able to harbor an electrical potential at their interface. In their research, the scientists used graphene-based sensors to demonstrate the accumulation of electrical charge.
These findings provide a new understanding of how signals are exchanged between neurons. On the one hand, understanding the properties of this electrical double layer can lead to the development of specific drugs, particularly related to Alzheimer’s disease. On the other hand, the achieved interplay between nanoelectronics and synaptic proteins could lead to the development of a connection between electronics and our neural system, which would represent a revolution in the development of cybernetics.
Link to publication: Link to cover:
Inquiry note: Priv.-Doz. Dr. Aleksandar Matković Chair of Physics [email protected] Tel.: 03842 402 4664 Mag. Christine Adacker Marketing and Communication Franz Josef-Straße 18, A-8700 Leoben Tel.: +43 3842/402-7224 Mobile: + 43 664 808987224 [email protected] www.unileoben.ac.at
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