Using Light in the Brain

A scientist at Massachusetts Institute for Technology, in a study published in Nature, have been able to alter or remove memories in a mouse’s brain using light beams. Negative memories of a mild shock were removed completely by this method. They also found that neurons in the hippocampus area of the brain, involving memory, can be altered to make a bad memory less negative. These breakthroughs will promise in future research involving the origins and treatment of anxiety and depression.