Bernstein Network Computational Neuroscience
  • Home
  • Network
    • The Bernstein Network
    • Bernstein Centers
      • Berlin
      • Freiburg
      • Göttingen
      • Munich
      • Tübingen
      • Heidelberg-Mannheim
    • Research Infrastructure
      • High Performance Simulation and Data Analysis
      • Research Data Management
      • Science Communication
      • Scientific Coordination
    • Awards and Initiatives
      • Valentin Braitenberg Award
      • Brains for Brains Young Researcher Award
      • Bernstein SmartSteps
    • Committees
    • Statutes
    • Membership
    • History
    • Donation
    • Contact
  • Newsroom
    • Newsroom
    • News
    • Meet the Scientist
    • Events
    • Calls
    • Media Coverage
    • Press
    • Network Publications
    • Bernstein Bulletin
  • Teaching and Research
    • Teaching and Research
    • Find a Scientist
    • Degree Programs
      • Master Programs
      • PhD Programs
    • Study and Training
      • Bernstein Student Workshop Series 2023
      • Online Learning
      • Advanced Courses
      • Internships and Master theses
    • Mission Statement
  • Career
    • Career
    • Job Pool
    • Join our team
  • Bernstein Conference
    • Bernstein Conference
    • Call for Satellite Workshops
    • General Information
      • Tentative Schedule
      • Past Conferences
    • FAQ
  • EN
  • DE
  • Search
  • Menu Menu
You are here: Home1 / Newsroom2 / News3 / A “green lung” for the brain
Munich – October 13, 2021

A “green lung” for the brain

LMU neurobiologists have shown that photosynthetic micro-organisms can be used as a source of oxygen for nerve cells.

Distribution of the microorganisms through blood vessels. Source: Özugur et al., iScience 2021

Bernstein member involved: Hans Straka

/LMU/ Nerve cells in the brain must process large amounts of signals every second. Most of the energy required to perform these tasks is generated by aerobic metabolism – which explains why the brain depends on the constant supply of adequate amounts of oxygen. Animals must obtain their oxygen from the environment. On the other hand, photosynthetic organisms, such as plants, are capable of producing it themselves, using sunlight as an energy source. A research group led by LMU neurobiologist Hans Straka and LMU molecular plant scientist Jörg Nickelsen has now shown that photosynthetic micro-organisms can be used to directly provide the brain with oxygen. Their findings appear in the journal iScience.

The researchers introduced photosynthetic micro-organisms – unicellular green algae and cyanobacteria – into the blood vessels of tadpoles of the clawed frog Xenopus laevis, an established experimental model. After isolation, when the brains were exposed to light, measurements of oxygen levels in the ventricles of the tadpole brain revealed that substantial amounts of oxygen were indeed being produced. “Conversely, in an oxygen-poor medium, nerve-cell activity came to a complete halt in darkness,” says Straka. “When the light was turned on again, the micro-organisms generated oxygen, and the neurons restarted firing. So, the oxygen generated by photosynthesis is indeed utilized to rescue neuronal activity.”

According to the authors, these proof-of-principle experiments demonstrate that unicellular photosynthetic micro-organisms could serve as a novel means of boosting the supply of oxygen to tissues in a controlled fashion. They could, for example, be used to enhance oxygen levels in cell cultures, in explanted organs or in brain slices. “Furthermore, photosynthetic organisms produce not only oxygen, but also sugars, for example. So it’s conceivable that their metabolic pathways could be exploited to synthesize nutrients as well,” says Straka. Since the intensity, duration and spectrum of light can be controlled with great precision, the method could also provide new approaches to the investigation of the role of oxygen in metabolic processes.

Original press release LMU Munich.

Publication

Suzan Özugur, Myra N. Chávez, Maria del Rosario Sanchez-Gonzalez, Lars Kunz, Jörg Nickelsen and Hans Straka: Green oxygen power plants in the brain rescue neuronal activity. iScience 2021

 

Further links

Hans Straka Lab

> more

A “green lung” for the brain

18. October 2021/in /by Claudia Duppé

Kontakt Aktuelles

Contact

Prof. Dr. Hans Straka

Division of Neurobiology
Department Biology II
Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
Großhaderner Straße 2
D-82152 Planegg-Martinsried

+49 (0)89 / 2180-74307
straka@biologie.uni-muenchen.de

Bernstein Netzwerk Computational Neuroscience Logo

Become a member
Statutes
Donation
Subscribe to Newsletter

 

Follow us on

Mastodon
© 2023 Bernstein Network Computational Neuroscience
  • Contact
  • Imprint
  • Privacy Policy
Scroll to top
Cookie-Zustimmung verwalten
We use cookies to optimize our website and our service.
Functional Always active
Der Zugriff oder die technische Speicherung ist unbedingt für den rechtmäßigen Zweck erforderlich, um die Nutzung eines bestimmten Dienstes zu ermöglichen, der vom Abonnenten oder Nutzer ausdrücklich angefordert wurde, oder für den alleinigen Zweck der Übertragung einer Nachricht über ein elektronisches Kommunikationsnetz.
Vorlieben
Die technische Speicherung oder der Zugriff ist für den rechtmäßigen Zweck der Speicherung von Voreinstellungen erforderlich, die nicht vom Abonnenten oder Nutzer beantragt wurden.
Statistics
Die technische Speicherung oder der Zugriff, der ausschließlich zu statistischen Zwecken erfolgt. Die technische Speicherung oder der Zugriff, der ausschließlich zu anonymen statistischen Zwecken verwendet wird. Ohne eine Aufforderung, die freiwillige Zustimmung Ihres Internetdienstanbieters oder zusätzliche Aufzeichnungen von Dritten können die zu diesem Zweck gespeicherten oder abgerufenen Informationen allein in der Regel nicht zu Ihrer Identifizierung verwendet werden.
Marketing
Die technische Speicherung oder der Zugriff ist erforderlich, um Nutzerprofile zu erstellen, um Werbung zu versenden oder um den Nutzer auf einer Website oder über mehrere Websites hinweg zu ähnlichen Marketingzwecken zu verfolgen.
Manage options Manage services Manage vendors Read more about these purposes
Settings
{title} {title} {title}