One cool thing about being at Stanford is access to really, really smart people. Case in point, I get to work with William Newsome, PhD, who, in addition to doing really interesting neuroscience research, co-leads the group that made recommendations to the national BRAIN Initiative, and also directs the new Stanford Neurosciences Institute. He has a lot of insight into the state of neuroscience, where the field is headed, and what challenges scientists face in trying to better understand the brain and develop new therapies.
Newsome recently participated in an Open Office Hours, in which Stanford faculty take questions through Facebook, essentially opening their office doors to anyone with questions. He later recorded answers to those questions in the video above.
In addition to the full- length video, we've been posting short excerpts on Facebook. In this clip, Newsome discusses the dynamic nature of our brain's connections. As he explains, the brain can switch connectivity to let us have one set of behaviors with our boss and another with our spouse.
In today's installment, Newsome discusses efforts to repair nerves that are damaged in stroke, spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injuries or other conditions. Stroke is of particular interest right now - the Neurosciences Institute that Newsome leads recently announced the creation of an interdisciplinary consortium at Stanford focused on stroke as one of their Big Ideas in Neuroscience.
In that segment, Newsome points out that nerves of our arms or legs, the so-called peripheral nervous system, can regrow if they get damaged. If you cut your finger, the nerves regrow. If you have a stroke or damage your spinal cord, the nerves don't regrow. Newsome said:
What's the difference between the central nervous system and the peripheral nervous system such that the central nervous system does not regrow most of the time yet the peripheral nervous system does? ... When we get that knowledge the hope is that we'll be able to set the conditions right for regrowth when there's an injury and we'll actually be able to help people recover function.
Previously: Deciphering "three pounds of goo" with Stanford neurobiologist Bill Newsome, Open Office Hours: Stanford neurobiologist taking your questions on brain research, Neuroscientists dream big, come up with ideas for prosthetics, mental health, stroke and more, Co-leader of Obama's BRAIN Initiative to direct Stanford's interdisciplinary neuroscience institute and Brain's gain: Stanford neuroscientist discusses two major new initiatives
