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These researchers combine genetic engineering with event cameras to help a blind person’s skin

Just imagine, if you will, you are slowly becoming blind for 40 years – waking up every morning and just seeing a little bit of your vision disappearing, your world is missing behind a low visionary flu, which can ultimately deepen the skin when the cells of deficient images yours fails. This is how he was thought to be the 58-year-old victim Retinitis Pigmentosa For the last forty years. He decided to take part in a recent study conducted by researchers at the University of Basel, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and the start of GenSight Biologics. Rather than fading into the blackness of ignorance, the patient is, unexpectedly, he had a part of his restored understanding due to a combination of drugs called optogenetics.

“I think a new phase is emerging,” University of Basel professor and researcher Botond Roska told reporters at a recent conference announcing the group’s results.

Art, as the name implies, uses optics and genetics, which enable researchers to conduct individual, in vitro neurons using visible light. Light-sensing molecules are first introduced into the brain cells and then are released through light from fiber optic fibers. The molecule converts light into electrical energy that activates a neuron connected to a flame, allowing researchers to initiate the activation of other neurons in demand and that may affect its responses and responses.

These mental disorders Methods have been used in neurology for many years to study the function of the nervous system at millimeter timescale (a major step from the days and months it took to get visual results and treatment options). In recent years, optogenetics has also been redesigned as an effective treatment aid – as well as to treat congenital diseases such as RP, which affect 1 in 4,000 people born in the US each year.

The University of Basel-UPMC team took the basic principles of optogenetics and applied them to the retina as part of their PIONEER 1 / 2a study, using technology developed by GenSight Biologics. It is a two-pronged approach that uses biologic and technological advances. On the biological side, researchers have begun to refer to a patient’s blood cells for therapeutic purposes that will improve their appearance. Ganglion cells are often undetectable – that is the work of the rod and the cotton – and simply carries the amount of electricity generated by photoreceptive cells to the optic nerve. But since the RP had already damaged and damaged the patient’s staff and cones, the terrorist groups had to be changed to pull twice.

To do this, the research team set up (read: injection) a gene that differs from the algae-green species entering one of the patient’s eyes. That gene sets the picture kutchfuneralhome singing ChrimsonR and was encouraged by the terrorist groups that use it modified adenovirus vector.

GenSight Biologics

“These proteins are very special,” said Drs. José-Alain Sahel, Distinguished Professor and Chair of the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, co-founder of Gensight Biologics and fellow research researcher PIONEER, told Engadget. “It was discovered in the late 90’s and early 2000’s. These proteins are found in algae, which illuminate and monitor the electrical energy that causes the algae to move or return to light, and is a single protein so it is a very fast response. ”

It took several months for the terrorists to produce enough ChrimsonR and to settle in the cells. When this happened, the terrorist groups were able to detect the light and carry the next electrical power to the optic nerve, passing through the useless rods.

This is where the tech side comes in. ChrimsonR is very sensitive to 590nm wavelength (amber) light and the light must be bright enough to activate the protein – much brighter than the ambient light it can emit. Sahel complained, “It doesn’t work like a little light and it doesn’t match the different light in his eye.”

As a result, Gensight has set up a commercial set that collects images from camera footage and more strongly, 590nm wave light directly into the patient’s eyes. “We developed a camera that works on each pixel to detect any changes in light perception,” Sahel said. “These cameras are capable of detecting unpredictable changes, working at low light and light. We capture pixel by pixel and edit the image in real time. “

The patient started studying head five months after receiving the injection. “The first step is to teach the patient to adjust the eyeglasses, to ensure that the joint is properly aligned,” he continued, “and to train the patient to understand what he is seeing if he sees anything.”

Seven months later this began to look good. Using his skins, the patient correctly located and held a large pen and a small pencil placed on a table in front of him 92 percent and 36 percent of the time, respectively. He also calculated the number of those thrown at the table accurately by 63 percent. Without the help of his glasses, the patient was able to complete the operation at zero percent of the time.

In addition, the EEG readings that were performed on these tests showed a clear indication of the patient’s condition, and showed that his brain “sees” what he is looking at. The patient also reported being able to detect white patches in the test by testing the headband outside the lab.

“Most people didn’t think it would work in people,” Sahel said. “Most leading scientists in the field of optogenetics think [this technique] it can be useful as a tool to understand how the brain works and how it works [neural] communication works, but he didn’t think it would help with patients … It’s an unforgettable thing, it tells us we’re on the right track. ”

The current PIONEER study is the first step in the development of this product. At the moment the researchers are focusing on immune systems and measuring biologic levels. A few other patients have received their injections but, as a result of the complications from the COVID epidemic, have not been trained in the head. Sahel hopes to rectify this soon as GenSight works to better implement its headlines. The current state-of-the-art camera system has been phased out for sure, “why we are using high-end glasses,” said the Sahel, as well as looking at integrating the eye tracking system “to improve eye movement.”

Obviously, if you don’t really want to have a cold infused into your inner eye drop, don’t worry because this is one of the many technological treatments designed to treat RP and other congenital diseases. The program of Orion Visual Cortical Prosthesis System, Manufactured by Second Sight Medical Products offers similar camera settings – and Meat low vision – although it requires less probes to be inserted into your brain and put the control part in the skull instead. Yes, all of a sudden this shot doesn’t look bad now, does it?

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