Optogenetics, the new brainwashing weapon?

A team of scientists just [invented?] a new brain controlling technique called optogenetics that turned approximately a dozen ordinary mice into crazy killing monsters using light to manipulate and trigger behavioral changes in them.

Whereas, with the light turned off, the controlled cluster of mice were for the most part restful; even deterred from the prey-like objects placed in their cages. However, upon turning the lights on, the mice ran havoc in their cages, attacking and killing crickets in the confinement and even took apart the plastic toys made to look like prey in the cage.

An author of the study published Thusrday, Ivan de Araujo commented, Basically, we are trying to understand how large brain networks work.

Predatory behavior involves complex motor actions, and studying it can help neurobiologists determine how different parts of the brain organize the fight or flight impulses to hunt, track, and pounce, flee, bite and kill. Over the three years of the study, Araujo observed signals that controlled the necks of the mice, their head positioning and movement of their jaws.

We ... targeted the groups of neurons that control predatory hunting, pursuit, capture and killing, Araujo further added.

The team attached a sensory device to the rodents' heads and pulsed blue light that activated neurons that had been engineered to respond to light, triggering the killing instinct.

Skeptics of the study, have raised the question for the agendas behind the research or lack thereof? is it to expand the usage to say humans? Or create better military functionality? Araujo answer to the query was a straight no.

Araujo stated, We didn't see mice attacking other mice, he said. It produced very strong, aggressive behavior toward other animals. In addition, mice did not appear willing to bite off more than they could chew. They didn't attack other mice or something too large to be reasonable prey. There are some constraints.

While humans have brain regions similar to those in other animals such as mice, optogenetics doesn't appear to have a military application.

But the point in case becomes that at usual mice paw at their preys head before delivering a fatal bite, however the lab mice didnt seem to care for the head and went straight for the killing ripping out the first body part they could gnaw at.

Even toys weren't safe when the light was on, whether they were motorized or lying still. When the researchers left the light on for them, They changed completely from avoidance to motor behavior displayed when they naturally hunt an insect. Their bite force is kind of powerful and pretty sufficient. Araujo added, When we stimulated these neurons, we observed that the muscles were contracting much more strongly, the bite force was more powerful.