At the CNR they have developed a method to measure the concentration of chlorine in nerve cells, a chemical element that regulates the inhibitory and excitatory mechanisms of the brain, from whose equilibrium derive cognitive deficits and important pathologies such as autism and epilepsy.
A result has been achieved that neurobiology has been pursuing for a long time: a non-invasive method to measure chlorine in brain cells in vivo, fundamental since cognitive deficits and diseases such as epilepsy and autism are potentially linked to defects in the regulation of chlorine.
To realize the new instrument sensor, able to measure the value of chlorine in the nerve cells of a living brain, was the Nanosciences Institute of the National Research Council (Nano-Cnr) and the Scuola Normale Superiore, in collaboration with the Italian Institute of Technology and University of Trento.
The study was carried out with the support of a Telethon funding and published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (Pnas).
The concentration of intracellular chlorine is a crucial regulator of the balance between excitatory neurons, which increase brain activity, and inhibitory neurons, which reduce it. The balance between the two components is fundamental for the proper functioning of the brain ", explains Gian Michele Ratto di Nano-Cnr. "When the chlorine level is too high the inhibition mechanisms work to a reduced extent and the brain enters a pathological state. Recent studies suggest that defective chlorine regulation plays a role in the onset of complex diseases such as epilepsy, Down syndrome and autism. " Therefore, a goal has been reached that the scientific community pursued for over 20 years.
Precise Rat, the new method combines the fluorescence of two proteins, used as 'light markers' of chlorine with two-photon microscopy in vivo, an imaging technique of which the Nano-Cnr team is a pioneer in Italy. The result is a real map of the concentration of chlorine in a living brain that allows us to distinguish physiological and pathological conditions ".
Until now it was possible to carry out measurements only in cell cultures or sections of the brain, simplified systems that do not have the physiological characteristics of a brain in its entirety ". The tool thus opens a new window into the functioning of the brain.
"The measurements carried out in vivo meanwhile gave the first direct demonstration that the concentration of chlorine changes during the initial phases of brain development. The next step will be to investigate changes in chlorine associated with a variety of pathological conditions, including epilepsy, and in genetic models of autism spectrum diseases. " "This will help to understand the mechanisms underlying diseases such as epilepsy and autism, still largely unknown, through in vivo studies where the integrity of the brain and its functioning are preserved". This result was made possible also thanks to the funding of the Telethon Foundation that is promoting itself in recent days #here I'm, the campaign to raise awareness and raise funds for scientific research against rare genetic diseases.
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