Optogenetics and the Neuroethics
by. Michelle Sheldrew
Optogenetics
is a field of study that has gathered much new interest with its hopeful
ability to minimize conditioned fear responses. However, as with any new
treatment, new boundaries must be established. Neuroscience has many taboos regarding
treatments and experimentation due to its history of researchers going beyond
what society thinks is ethical. For example, lobotomy was popular brain surgery
in the 1930s to treat certain mental disorders (West, 2022). The treatment was
done by cutting off part of the frontal lobe, which led to serious side effects
that went from seizures to changes in personality (West, 2022). Considering these
treatments were used on homosexuals, depressed, and people with schizophrenia, people
now find it appalling and are resistant to any treatment when it is invasive. Optogenetics
is the ability to control neural activity in the brain using optics (light; (Adamczyk
& Zawadzki, 2020). This ability to control neural activity refers to altering
memories, a novel method for treating conditioned responses.
Post-traumatic
stress disorder (PTSD) and phobia are common anxiety/fear-inducing mental
disorders currently affecting many people. During an experiment done by Grella
et al. (2022), it was discovered that optogenetics could reduce conditioned
fear. This was tested using mice conditioned to be in a cage and shocked.
This led to the mice developing a conditioned fear response that would then be
treated using optics surgically introduced into their brain. The exact location
they have discovered most effective is the dorsal dentate gyrus neurons (Grella
et al., 2022). The idea was that a positive, rewarding experience caused by the
optics would replace the negative affective state ((Grella et al., 2022). Which
in turn is, modifying the memory created by the mice into a positive experience.
In Adamczyk
& Zawadzki’s article “The Memory-Modifying Potential of Optogenetics and
the Need for Neuroethics,” they argue that since human experimentation has been
confirmed and optogenetics has the potential for more than just treating PTSD
and phobias that there is a need for Neuroethical boundaries (Adamczyk &
Zawadzki, 2020). The issues arising from this article encompass false memories
and modification of memory details. As described in the previous experiment, mice
had their memories overwritten with a new positive experience. While this benefits
many people with PTSD, what are the possibilities of this neuromodulation being
used in other aspects? Anyone can go to it if this becomes a new standard
treatment for modifying unwanted memories, such as getting a tan from a salon.
What could this mean when coming to trials and crimes?
Memory
modification has many positive aspects but also introduces new ethical
questions. How standard will this method be? Is it going to be a controlled and
regulated process? Optogenetics is the future for memory-modifying technologies
(MMTs) with the highest chance of success. However, where are the boundaries, and
when should we start speaking about Neuroethics?
Work Citation
Adamczyk,
A. K., & Zawadzki, P. (2020). The Memory-Modifying Potential of
Optogenetics and the Need for Neuroethics. NanoEthics, 14(3),
207–225. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11569-020-00377-1
Grella, S. L., Fortin, A. H., Ruesch, E., Bladon, J. H., Reynolds,
L. F., Gross, A., Shpokayte, M., Cincotta, C., Zaki, Y., & Ramirez, S.
(2022). Reactivating hippocampal-mediated memories during reconsolidation to
disrupt fear. Nature Communications, 13(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-022-32246-8
West,
M. (2022, August 16). What is a lobotomy? Uses, procedure, and history.
Www.medicalnewstoday.com.
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/what-is-a-lobotomy
No comments:
Post a Comment