Dalhousie researchers activate muscles with light

[GregK]

Interesting.


“We’ve found we can prevent atrophy in completely dennervated muscles by shining light on them through the skin for an hour a day,” says Dr. Rafuse. “Others have used light to successfully stimulate nerves, but we are the first to bypass the nerves and go straight to the muscles. This is vital, because the nerve tissue is completely destroyed in many injuries and in diseases like ALS, so you can’t rely on stimulating nerves to activate muscles.”

This developing technology has many potential uses, including the ability to stimulate the diaphragm in people with ALS.

 

[affected]

 

[Nikki J]

I don't understand how this would help us. Ours is not a primary muscle disease. It is the motor neuron. It would be nice not to have atrophy of course but we still would not get the signal so I can't see how our function would improve?

 

[GregK]

Stimulating the diaphragm is one application.

 

[Nikki J]

I see they say that but my point remains. They speak of directly acting of the muscle but the cause of our problem is not the muscle itself

 

[GregK]

Gotcha.

I believe the benefit would be that they could use light instead of nerves.
Like a DPS using light vs electrical impulses.

 

[Nikki J]

So the goal is not to prevent atrophy but to make the muscle work? How cool would that be! And does anyone else get a visual of someone using a light pointing and controlling us like puppets on a string? LOL

 

[meghen]

Nikki J. - I thought the same thing when I came across this information yesterday. I also noticed it states the light could prevent atrophy - aren't we past the point of atrophic?

 

[rogeriopaguilar]

Maybe to maintain the muscle mass until someone finds a way to reinnervate it after finding a way to restore damage neurons. They already did something like this in mice:

Science in the Classroom | A collection of annotated research papers and accompanying teaching materials

 

[Nikki J]

This gives a little more explanation
Dalhousie medical researchers bypass nerves to activate muscles directly with light - Dal News - Dalhousie University

Very cool but a long way to go before it could get to humans

 

[van1]

I will take any LIGHT of hope.

 

[Nuts]

Any LIGHT of hope...too funny, Van.

Nikki, I can see the puppet imagery. Imagine, however, if your hands work and you could activate other muscles yourself. If this were available and started before the muscles atrophy, you just have to figure out which muscles to move. Ok, so not as simple as handing hubby the controller for the ceiling lift and letting him drive himself. I wonder if they could target muscle groups. Maybe give you a map of the body and let you know where to shoot the light in order to move something.

Yep, it makes me tired thinking of it, but it's very cool science.