Gene therapy: Magnets used to turn specific brain circuits off and on at will to treat Parkinson's disease and other conditions

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"Researchers have developed a gene therapy technology that uses magnetic fields to switch groups of neurons on and off, controlling brain circuits affected by Parkinson’s disease. ..."

"A new technology enables the control of specific brain circuits non-invasively with magnetic fields, according to a preclinical study from researchers ... The technology holds promise as a powerful tool for studying the brain and as the basis for future neurological and psychiatric treatments for conditions as diverse as Parkinson’s disease, depression, obesity and complex pain. ...

The researchers performed experiments in mice showing that it can switch on or off selected populations of neurons, with clear effects on the animals’ movements. In one experiment, they used it to reduce abnormal movements in a mouse model of Parkinson’s disease. ..."

From the abstract:

"Here, we report a magnetogenetic system, based on a single anti-ferritin nanobody-TRPV1 receptor fusion protein, which regulated neuronal activity when exposed to magnetic fields. Adeno-associated virus (AAV)–mediated delivery of a floxed nanobody-TRPV1 into the striatum of adenosine-2a receptor–Cre drivers resulted in motor freezing when placed in a magnetic resonance imaging machine or adjacent to a transcranial magnetic stimulation device. Functional imaging and fiber photometry confirmed activation in response to magnetic fields. Expression of the same construct in the striatum of wild-type mice along with a second injection of an AAVretro expressing Cre into the globus pallidus led to similar circuit specificity and motor responses. Last, a mutation was generated to gate chloride and inhibit neuronal activity. Expression of this variant in the subthalamic nucleus in PitX2-Cre parkinsonian mice resulted in reduced c-fos expression and motor rotational behavior. These data demonstrate that magnetogenetic constructs can bidirectionally regulate activity of specific neuronal circuits noninvasively in vivo using clinically available devices."

Magnets used to turn specific brain circuits off and on at will

Magnetically Regulated Gene Therapy Tech Offers Precise Brain-Circuit Control (original news release)

Bidirectional regulation of motor circuits using magnetogenetic gene therapy (open access)