Here are my notes on the above TED where Allen Jones CEO of the Allen Brain Institute reviews what type of research procedures are used on their human brain back brains.
A Map of the Brain: My Notes
Humans have long been fascinated by the human brain
We now have a transformation in brain mapping for various brain structures
Rear brain contains cerebellum for posture, balance
Mid-brain temporal lobe controls language
Frontal cortex key in thought and decision making
Historically, brain staining aids in understanding brain microstructure distribution
Neuron distribution is linked to brain function
Genes control brain proteins and neurons
We want to know what genes out of 25,000 candidates are turned on in the brain
We find human brains to study after death
20 to 60 year olds
No psychiatric or drug abuse history
Males oversampled due to higher rates of accidental death
Our process for brain study
Magnetic resonance imaging (MR)
Diffustion tensor imaging (DTI)
Brain slices for RNA purification
Brain slices for gene activation reference map
1000 samples taken from each brain with 50,000 datapoints per brain=1,000,000 datapoints per brain
Data made publicly available to scientists around the world
We map where genes are turned on in specific brain regions
What have we learned?
CNS drugs like fluoxetine (Prozac) modulate serotonin gene function
We can scan brain for drug effects for new drug development
What makes us individuals is important but we are 99% genetically the same.
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Photo of sunrise in St. Peterburg, FL from the authors files.
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