{"id":114445,"date":"2024-10-15T15:10:45","date_gmt":"2024-10-15T08:10:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/?p=114445"},"modified":"2024-10-15T15:10:45","modified_gmt":"2024-10-15T08:10:45","slug":"scientists-map-fruit-fly-brain-to-learn-its-functions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/?p=114445","title":{"rendered":"Scientists Map Fruit Fly Brain to Learn Its Functions"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"fluid\"\r\n     data-ad-layout-key=\"-fb+5w+4e-db+86\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"7910942971\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"article-content\">\n<div class=\"wsw\">\n<p>A group of international scientists recently announced they had made a map of the whole \u201cbrain\u201d of an adult fruit fly.<\/p>\n<p>They said the <strong>milestone<\/strong> would provide new knowledge about the brains of all animals including humans.<\/p>\n<p>The research gives details of more than 50 million connections between 139,000 neurons, which are nerve cells in the brain of the fruit fly.<\/p>\n<p>The scientific name of the animal is Drosophila melanogaster. It is often used in scientific experiments, especially studies of nerve cells.<\/p>\n<p>The researchers wanted to find out exactly how the brain cells operate when they are healthy and normal.<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian Seung was one of the leaders of the research, which was published as a series of studies in <em>Nature<\/em>. Seung is a professor at Princeton University in New Jersey. He said, \u201cYou might be asking why we should care about the brain of a fruit fly. My simple answer is that if we can truly understand how any brain <strong>functions<\/strong>, it\u2019s bound to tell us something about all brains.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The brain of a fruit fly is small \u2014 less than one millimeter wide. But some scientists are very interested in them. \u201cIt\u2019s beautiful,\u201d said Cambridge researcher Gregory Jefferis.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wsw__embed\">\n<figure class=\"media-image js-media-expand\">\n<div class=\"img-wrap\">\n<div class=\"thumb\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"FILE - A handout microscopic image of a fruit fly released August 11, 2006. (REUTERS\/CSIRO\/Handout EDITORIAL USE ONLY\/File Photo)\" src=\"https:\/\/gdb.voanews.com\/50658aca-3e9c-45d2-b150-fcbd756a4c69_w250_r0_s.jpg\"\/>\n<\/div>\n<p><span class=\"ico ico-fullscreen ico--media-expand ico--rounded\"\/>\n<\/div><figcaption>\n<span class=\"caption\">FILE &#8211; A handout microscopic image of a fruit fly released August 11, 2006. (REUTERS\/CSIRO\/Handout EDITORIAL USE ONLY\/File Photo)<\/span><br \/>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>What the map showed<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The researchers created what they called a \u201cwiring <strong>diagram<\/strong>\u201d of an adult fruit fly. It is also called a \u201cconnectome\u201d map. The goal was to create a map that shows how neurons connect to one another and how they operate.<\/p>\n<p>Similar research has been done with simpler forms of life. For example, scientists have mapped the \u201cbrain\u201d of a worm called Caenorhabditis elegans. They have also mapped the neural material of the <strong>larval<\/strong> form of the fruit fly. But the adult fruit fly was more complex. The idea was to link the neural connections to the behavior of the animal.<\/p>\n<p>Mala Murthy was another co-leader of the research from Princeton. Murthy said, \u201cOne of the major questions we\u2019re addressing is how the wiring in the brain, its neurons and connections, can <strong>give rise to<\/strong> animal behavior.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>One of the studies in the series examined the brain <strong>circuits<\/strong> involved in walking. It discovered how flies halt. Another studied the fly\u2019s network of neurons associated with tasting and also grooming circuits. These circuits are behind the behavior in which a fly uses its leg to remove dirt from <strong>antennae<\/strong> on its head.<\/p>\n<p>One of the studies examined how a fly processes motion and color information. And still another looked closely at how parts of the fly\u2019s brain were connected. That study discovered that a large group of neurons called \u201chub neurons\u201d might help speed up the flow of information.<\/p>\n<p>The researchers created the map by following how both sides of the brain were organized and linked the circuits they identified to behaviors. They also identified classes of cells in the fly\u2019s brain and examined the chemical connections between neurons known as synapses.<\/p>\n<p>The international collaboration of scientists called FlyWire Consortium carried out the research.<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019m Mario Ritter, Jr.<\/p>\n<p><em>Will Dunham reported this story for Reuters. Mario Ritter, Jr. adapted it for VOA Learning English. <\/em><\/p>\n<p>________________________________________________<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wsw__h2\">Words in This Story<\/h2>\n<p><strong>milestone <\/strong><em>\u2013n.<\/em> a sign that a major goal has been reached<\/p>\n<p><strong>function<\/strong> <em>\u2013n. <\/em>to purpose for something and the job that it does<\/p>\n<p><strong>diagram<\/strong> \u2013n. a simplified picture that shows how something works<\/p>\n<p><strong>give rise to <\/strong><em>\u2013v. (phrasal)<\/em> to cause; to bring about<\/p>\n<p><strong>circuit <\/strong><em>\u2013n.<\/em> a complete path by which electricity travels away from and returns to its source<\/p>\n<p><strong>antenna (antennae pl.) <\/strong><em>\u2013n.<\/em> the long structures attached to the heads of insects that help them feel and sense<\/p>\n<p><em>We want to hear from you. <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Our comment policy is <\/em><a class=\"wsw__a\" href=\"https:\/\/learningenglish.voanews.com\/p\/5378.html\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"https:\/\/learningenglish.voanews.com\/p\/5378.html\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>here<\/em><\/a><em>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"fluid\"\r\n     data-ad-layout-key=\"-fb+5w+4e-db+86\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"7910942971\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><div data-type=\"_mgwidget\" data-widget-id=\"1660802\">\r\n<\/div>\r\n<script>(function(w,q){w[q]=w[q]||[];w[q].push([\"_mgc.load\"])})(window,\"_mgq\");\r\n<\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/learningenglish.voanews.com\/a\/scientists-map-fruit-fly-brain-to-learn-its-functions\/7810432.html\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A group of international scientists recently announced they had made a map of the whole \u201cbrain\u201d of an adult fruit fly. They said the milestone would provide new knowledge about &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/?p=114445\" class=\"more-link\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8628],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-114445","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-science","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/114445","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=114445"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/114445\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=114445"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=114445"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=114445"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}