Rebooting is often the easiest solution to tech problems. What many don’t realize is that certain human processes function the same. For instance, passing out can restore proper blood flow in the brain by reducing gravitational pull. MIT researchers are now trying to take these biological reboots to a new level. Specifically, they are trying to reboot eyes and cure cases of lazy eye by temporarily disrupting normal vision to recalibrate it in the long run.
A gap in medicine
Amblyopia, or lazy eye, is a medical condition where one eye provides weaker input than the other. As such, the brain stops exerting efforts on the weaker eye in favor of the other eye instead. There are solutions to fixing the problem, such as covering the normal eye to recalibrate the brain and restore the lazy eye. However, the solution can only work if done during childhood; otherwise, the issue is basically irreversible.
Or, at least that was the assumption. Since 2021, there have been studies trying to replicate the process used in childhood to force the brain to use the weaker eye. However, recent studies have found that replicating the process by anesthesizing the weaker eye also works. This process would essentially “reboot” the amblyopic eye.
So far, tests on adult lab mice have been successful. Researchers found that anesthetization of the eyes effectively forces the brain back into a state similar to before birth and synchronizes the bursts of signals. Researchers were also able to test if shutting off these channels stopped the recalibration, which means there’s more understanding of the connections responsible for the amblyopia. While there’s a need for further testing, this research could affect millions.
Restarting vision
In the tech world, sometimes it’s easier to just reboot than to seek out the individual process responsible for the error. In the same vein, our bodies might not be as different as we think. If we can reboot our eyes, what else can we do? The prospect of rebooting as a first step to curing conditions that are otherwise thought of as permanent could be a promising change.
YouTube: Rebooting the Eye: A New Path to Restore Vision in Lazy Eye
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Photo credit: The feature image is symbolic and taken by Marina Vitale.
Sources: David Orenstein (MIT News) / Madison Echavarri-Leet, et al. (Cell Reports)
