How do researchers study the brain of humans and animals

Current research has used TMS to study the brain areas responsible for emotion and cognition and their roles in how people perceive intention and approach moral reasoning Kalbe et al. Neuroimaging techniques have important implications for understanding our behaviour, including our responses to those around us. Naomi Eisenberger and her colleagues tested the hypothesis that people who were excluded by others would report emotional distress and that images of their brains would show that they experienced pain in the same part of the brain where physical pain is normally experienced.

In the experiment, 13 participants were each placed into an fMRI brain-imaging machine. Each of the participants was measured under three different conditions. In the first part of the experiment, the participants were told that as a result of technical difficulties, the link to the other two scanners could not yet be made, and thus at first they could not engage in, but only watch, the game play.

This allowed the researchers to take a baseline fMRI reading. Then, during a second, inclusion, scan, the participants played the game, supposedly with the two other players. During this time, the other players threw the ball to the participants.

In the third, exclusion, scan, however, the participants initially received seven throws from the other two players but were then excluded from the game because the two players stopped throwing the ball to the participants for the remainder of the scan 45 throws. The results of the analyses showed that activity in two areas of the frontal lobe was significantly greater during the exclusion scan than during the inclusion scan. Because these brain regions are known from prior research to be active for individuals who are experiencing physical pain, the authors concluded that these results show that the physiological brain responses associated with being socially excluded by others are similar to brain responses experienced upon physical injury.

People who feel that they are excluded, or even those who observe other people being excluded, not only experience pain, but feel worse about themselves and their relationships with people more generally, and they may work harder to try to restore their connections with others.

Chen, Z. When hurt will not heal: Exploring the capacity to relive social and physical pain. Psychological Science, 19 8 , — Damasio, H. The return of Phineas Gage: Clues about the brain from the skull of a famous patient. In Social neuroscience: Key readings pp. Diamond, M. New Horizons for Learning. Eisenberger, N. Does rejection hurt? An fMRI study of social exclusion. Science, , — Kalbe, E. Dissociating cognitive from affective theory of mind: A TMS study.

Kanwisher, N. Domain specificity in face perception. Nature Neuroscience, 3 8 , — Koenigs, M. Damage to the prefontal cortex increases utilitarian moral judgments.

Nature, , — Kotowicz, Z. The strange case of Phineas Gage. History of the Human Sciences, 20 1 , — Macmillan, M. An odd kind of fame: Stories of Phineas Gage. Van den Eynde, F. Brain disorders can include any problem with the brain and spinal cord, including mental health and sensory disorders. However, one of the greatest challenges in neuroscience research is tackling neurodegenerative diseases such as dementia and Parkinson's disease, which currently affect tens of millions of people across Europe.

As the proportion of the elderly in Europe increases, it is vital that the most effective methods of research are used to combat this challenge. While non-animal methods of study have made progress in some fields of biomedical research, their use in neuroscience remains extremely limited due to the complex and interconnected structure of the brain.

In most cases, a living and behaving organism remains the only viable model to study the brain in action. While we wait for alternative methods of study to emerge it is therefore essential to continue to develop better animal models and ensure the highest standards of animal welfare. Mice and rats - The most commonly used animal species in neuroscience research are mice and rats, as the complexity of their brains is similar enough to humans to give a good overview of brain processes.

Mice can also be genetically modified with relative ease, meaning that researchers can look at the effect of individual genes on the way disease progresses. As mice and rats have a shorter life span than other mammals, it is possible to use them to study diseases over a longer period of time or in ageing animals. Mice and rats can also be used to study the effects of additional conditions comorbidities , such as obesity or diabetes, on neurological diseases.

Zebrafish - Zebrafish are also becoming more widely used for neuroscience research. Observational studies, combined with the ability to see the molecular changes in the brain and firing neurons, are ongoing to understand how they react to stress and depression — and used to test potential treatments or highlight new mechanisms to study in humans. Monkeys - Having such a close genetic relationship to humans, monkeys are one of the most valuable animal models used in research.

Less than one per cent of the animals used in research in the EU are monkeys, however their impact in providing the most reliable information for what is happening, or what is going to happen, in humans cannot be underestimated.

While there are understandable ethical worries about using monkeys, they continue to be an important model for studying the function of the brain due to the similarity in structure and composition. As monkeys have very similar brains to humans, we can gain reliable information as to what might be happening in a human one. Much of what we know today about complex behaviour and emotion, vision, and higher cognitive function has been gained from the study of monkeys.

Specifically, the prefrontal cortex is more alike between non-human primates and humans than between rodents and humans. All animal experiments are strictly regulated and reviewed by ethical committees before they are allowed to proceed and the use of monkeys in research is only permitted when there is no other animal or non-animal model that could provide the same answer.

In addition, in Europe, research with great apes such as chimpanzees — the animal that is the mostly closely related to humans - is prohibited.

Neuroimaging techniques have important implications for understanding our behaviour, including our responses to those around us. Naomi Eisenberger and her colleagues tested the hypothesis that people who were excluded by others would report emotional distress and that images of their brains would show that they experienced pain in the same part of the brain where physical pain is normally experienced.

In the experiment, 13 participants were each placed into an fMRI brain-imaging machine. Each of the participants was measured under three different conditions. In the first part of the experiment, the participants were told that as a result of technical difficulties, the link to the other two scanners could not yet be made, and thus at first they could not engage in, but only watch, the game play.

This allowed the researchers to take a baseline fMRI reading. Then, during a second, inclusion, scan, the participants played the game, supposedly with the two other players. During this time, the other players threw the ball to the participants. In the third, exclusion, scan, however, the participants initially received seven throws from the other two players but were then excluded from the game because the two players stopped throwing the ball to the participants for the remainder of the scan 45 throws.

The results of the analyses showed that activity in two areas of the frontal lobe was significantly greater during the exclusion scan than during the inclusion scan. Because these brain regions are known from prior research to be active for individuals who are experiencing physical pain, the authors concluded that these results show that the physiological brain responses associated with being socially excluded by others are similar to brain responses experienced upon physical injury.

People who feel that they are excluded, or even those who observe other people being excluded, not only experience pain, but feel worse about themselves and their relationships with people more generally, and they may work harder to try to restore their connections with others.

Figure 5. Harlow, M. Chen, Z. When hurt will not heal: Exploring the capacity to relive social and physical pain. Psychological Science, 19 8 , — Damasio, H. The return of Phineas Gage: Clues about the brain from the skull of a famous patient.

In Social neuroscience: Key readings pp. Diamond, M. New Horizons for Learning. Eisenberger, N. Does rejection hurt? An fMRI study of social exclusion. Science, , — Kalbe, E. Dissociating cognitive from affective theory of mind: A TMS study. Kanwisher, N. Domain specificity in face perception. Nature Neuroscience, 3 8 , — Koenigs, M. Damage to the prefontal cortex increases utilitarian moral judgments.

Nature, , — Kotowicz, Z. The strange case of Phineas Gage. History of the Human Sciences, 20 1 , — Macmillan, M. An odd kind of fame: Stories of Phineas Gage.