Neuroscience and Biotechnology - Biotech Institute

1 Neuroscience and Biotechnology Contents Welcome to the Issue! Neurological Disease ..3 Healing the Central Nervous System Tooling Up to Help ..4. Stem Cells ..6 Your brain and spinal cord, which make up your central nervous Fixing Bad Breaks ..8 system, are in charge of your body. When you walk across the Career Profile ..10 street or pet a soft kitten or take a test nearly everything you Epilepsy: Electrical Storm in the Brain ..12 consciously do your central nervous system is at work. Wide World of Biotechnology ..14 But what happens when the central nervous system has a More Resources ..16 problem? When injuries and diseases, some of which are inherited, affect the brain and spine, all sorts of unwanted symptoms can take place.

2 Some are pyschological such extremely short attention span. Some might seem minor, such as a tremor that can come with Parkinson's disease. Others are life-threatening. Many get The Biotechnology Institute is an independent, national, nonprofit organization dedicated to education and research worse over time; these are called neurodegenerative. about the present and future impact of Biotechnology . Our Using Biotechnology , people are working to figure out the mission is to engage, excite, and educate the public, particularly cause of these neurological problems and looking for ways young people, about Biotechnology and its immense potential to fix them.

3 For solving human health, food, and environmental problems. In this issue, we discuss diseases of the central nervous Your World is the premier Biotechnology publication for system. We also take a closer look at a sample of the tools 7th-to 12th-grade students. Each issue looks at the science and technology scientists are using today to address the of Biotechnology and its practical applications in health care, various ways your brain and spinal cord can go haywire. agriculture, the environment, and industry. Some back issues are available. We hope you'll find this issue interesting and perhaps interesting enough to consider a career in the field!

4 Sincerely, YOUR WORLD. Vol. 19, No. 1 Fall 2010. Publisher The Biotechnology Institute Editor Jeff Ghannam Paul A. Hanle Managing Editor Lois M. Baron President Graphic Design Diahann Hill Biotechnology Institute Advisory Board Don DeRosa, EdD, CityLab, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA. Lori Dodson, PhD, North Montco Technical Career Center, Landsdale, PA. Lucinda (Cindy) Elliott, PhD, Shippensburg University, Shippensburg, PA Photo credits Mark Temons, Muncy Junior/Senior High School, Muncy, PA p. 3 Spine: SPL/Photo Researchers UCB. p. 4 Dust bunny: Sharon Williams Acknowledgments p. 4 Stem cell: SPL/Photo Researchers The Biotechnology Institute would like to thank the Pennsylvania p.

5 7 Brain lesions: SPL/Photo Researchers Biotechnology Association, which originally developed Your World, and Jeff Alan Davidson, founding editor. For More Information Biotechnology Institute 2000 N. 14th Street, Suite 700. Arlington, VA 22201. Phone: 703-248-8681 Fax: 703-248-8687. 2010 Biotechnology Institute . All rights reserved. Bryan White recently finished research training at the Institute for The Biotechnology Institute acknowledges with deep gratitude the financial support of UCB. Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine at the University of Washington and is now a lecturer at the University of Washington Bothell. He is interested in stem cell treatments for various medical illnesses.

6 Megan Couch is a senior majoring in biology at the University of Washington Bothell and is interested in a career in Biotechnology . 2 Your World Taking Care of Your Brain (neuro-) + (-technology) =. Biotechnology and the Central Nervous System By Bryan White and Megan Couch Any gymnast, cycler, or new to you, including football player knows the fibromyalgia, dementia, nar- importance of protecting colepsy, memory problems, your head and neck. In order diabetic neuropathic pain, to flip, pedal, or throw a pass and restless legs syndrome. you have to send instruc- In addition to diseases tions from your brain to that attack the central Spinal cord injuries are one of the most your muscles.

7 These nervous system, injuries common severe injuries in teenagers, with instructions pass through can damage the brain or 6,000 new cases per year in the United States. specialized cells called neu- spine. For examples, explo- Neurons of the central nervous system (neurons rons that relay information sions can cause traumatic found in the brain and spinal cord) do not re-grow from your brain to other brain injury (TBI). And if you if cut or damaged, so the majority of spinal cord damage your spinal cord parts of your body. Neurons injuries are permanent. Due to recent advances pass from your head to your and your neurons are cut in stem cell Biotechnology , there is hope for new body through a structure or injured, the instructions therapies to treat spinal cord injuries and other called your spinal cord.

8 From your brain cannot diseases of the central nervous system (see The spinal cord is feet reach your muscles and story on page 6). long in humans and up to you will become paralyzed feet long in giraffes! below the area of damage. The brain and spinal cord In addition to wanting to make up your central treat people who have nervous system. neurodiseases now, one Not surprisingly with concern is that as the a system that covers so population ages, even much territory, the problems more people will be can be many and varied. afflicted. No doubt you've heard of Biotechnology is being some neurological disorders, employed to deal with such as Alzheimer's and CNS disorders, such as attention-deficit disorder, genetic sequencing to epilepsy, perhaps Parkin- discover genetic causes son's.

9 Others might be a and the use of stem cells. Your World 3. Tooling Up to Help Three ways Biotechnology is working to repair problems in the central nervous system to divide with one daughter cell becoming a specialized cell and one daughter cell being a copy of the original stem cell. Stem cells of a particular tissue can become any cell in that tissue. For example, blood stem cells can become any kind of cell in the blood. Neural stem cells can become any type of cell in the central nervous system. This ability is called multipotency. The ability to become all the different types of cells in var- ious tissues is called pluripotency. Most stem cells in adults are multipotent, but embryonic stem cells are an example of pluripotent cells.

10 Researchers are interested in certain kinds 1. Stem Cells of stem cells as an endless source of See that dust bunny hiding under your bed when you clean cells for various medical therapies. your room? Where did it come from? Did you know that dust See Stem Cells on p. 6. bunnies are often made from our dead skin cells that fall off when we move around? Our hair grows, our nails get longer, and our red blood cells get replaced every four months. What is responsible for all these areas of growth in our bodies? Stems cells in each of these areas produce the cells need- ed to grow these structures. In some ways, stem cells are like factories that can mass produce different types of cells.