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MANHASETT, N.Y.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–The vagus nerve extends from the human brainstem to major peripheral organs and is the primary conduit for the body’s inflammatory immune response to disease, bacteria and viruses. functions as Researchers at the Feinstein Institute of Medicine have shown for the first time its ability to turn on specific receptors on the vagus nerve to activate the inflammatory reflex.Research published in journals molecular medicine, It is based on decades of research into how electrical stimulation controls the vagus nerve, a cornerstone of biomedicine.
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Sangeeta Chavan, Ph.D., is a senior author on a Molecular Medicine paper. (Credit: The Feinstein Institute)
The body releases inflammatory proteins to fight disease that are part of the immune response. A communication pathway known as the inflammatory reflex is signaled through the vagus nerve. The vagus nerve is the longest cranial nerve, composed of over 100,000 individual nerve fibers. Through electrical signals, the brain can tell the body, via the vagus nerve, when to stop releasing inflammatory molecules. , can be the underlying cause of acute and chronic diseases such as diabetes and even cancer.
The existence of a vagal circuit that protects against excessive inflammation was identified over 20 years ago, but how this response is activated was previously unknown. A new study led by Sangeeta S. Chavan, Ph.D., professor at the Feinstein Institutes’ Institute for Bioelectronic Medicine, identifies specific sensory neurons on the vagus nerve that send inflammation-related information to the brain to cause hypothermia and activation. Identify subsets. anti-inflammatory response.
“The vagus nerve is important for letting the brain and body organs know when to inflame or clear, which is our body’s natural response to disease and infection,” says senior author of the paper. “This new study allows us to better understand how stimulation can manipulate vagus nerve function,” said author Dr. Chaban.
in the molecular medicine In a paper titled “Vagal Nerve Fibers Expressing the Transient Receptor Potential Ankyrin-1 Mediate IL-1β-Induced Hypothermia and Reflex Anti-Inflammatory Responses,” the researchers wrote a study in what is known as optogenetics. We describe how we were able to stimulate the vagus nerve in mice using light to record physiological responses, including body temperature. Scientists have studied how the pro-inflammatory cytokine interleukin-1β (IL-1β) interacts with the transient receptor potential ankyrin-1 (TRPA1) in sensory neurons. Typically a cold, pain, and itch detector, TRPA1, when activated by IL-1β, can slow cytokine release and reduce lethal levels of inflammation.
“We continue to learn new mechanisms of vagal control of inflammation. These new findings reveal for the first time how the vagus nerve informs the brain about inflammation in the body.”
The Feinstein Institute is known as the world’s scientific home of bioelectronic medicine due to its early laboratory discoveries. Decades ago, Dr. Tracey and his colleagues discovered that the vagus nerve plays a role in controlling our body’s immune response, defining it as the inflammatory reflex. Researchers around the world continue to build on their findings to develop devices to cure disease.
About biomedicine
The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research is a global scientific hub for bioelectronic medicine that combines molecular medicine, neuroscience and biomedical engineering. At the Feinstein Institute, medical researchers use the latest technology to develop new device-based therapies to treat illness and injury.
Based on years of research into the molecular mechanisms of disease and the links between the nervous and immune systems, our researchers have discovered neural targets that can be activated or inhibited by neuromodulatory devices such as vagus nerve implants, and to Controls immune response and inflammation. If inflammation is well controlled, diseases such as arthritis, pulmonary hypertension, Crohn’s disease, inflammatory bowel disease, diabetes, cancer and autoimmune diseases can be treated more effectively.
Beyond inflammation, using a novel brain-computer interface, our researchers have developed techniques to bypass nervous system damage. The creation of bioelectronic knowledge will one day allow us to treat illness and injury with our own nerves, without the use of expensive and potentially harmful pharmaceuticals.
About The Feinstein Laboratories
Feinstein Institute of Medicine is the house of of research Institute of Northwell Health, New York State’s largest healthcare provider and private employer envelop With 50 laboratories, 3,000 clinical studies, and 5,000 researchers and staff, the Feinstein Institutes set the bar for medical innovation through five laboratories: Behavioral Sciences, Bioelectronics, Oncology, Health Systems Sciences, and Molecular Medicine. pulling up. We are a global scientific leader in bioelectronic medicine, a new scientific field with the potential to revolutionize medicine, achieving breakthroughs in genetics, oncology, brain research, mental health, and autoimmunity. Leader. For more information on how to generate knowledge to cure disease, please visit: http://feinstein.northwell.edu and follow us LinkedIn.
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Matthew Rivassi
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Source: The Feinstein Institute of Medicine
