Light Triggers New Code for Brain Cells

piggy submitted, created time 1 month 3 weeks (www.sciencedaily.com)

Brain cells can adopt a new chemical code in response to cues from the outside world, scientists working with tadpoles at the University of California, San Diego report in the journal Nature.

The discovery opens the possibility that brain chemistry could be selectively altered by stimulating specific circuits to remedy low levels of neural chemicals that underlie some human ailments.

Dark tadpoles don pale camouflage when exposed to bright light

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UCSB researchers discover the dawn of animal vision

william submitted, created time 1 year 2 months (www.eurekalert.org)

By peering deep into evolutionary history, scientists at the University of California, Santa Barbara have discovered the origins of photosensitivity in animals. The findings are published in this week's issue of the scientific journal PLoS ONE.

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