PLOS Biology: New Articles

1. Closing the sensory feedback loop is necessary for effective neurorehabilitation

   by Andrea Cimolato, Stanisa Raspopovic

   Recent advances in neurotechnology enable somatosensory feedback restoration in disabled individuals. This Perspective discusses how closing the sensory feedback loop with brain implants and nerve electrodes for stimulation may improve rehabilitation and assistive systems for patients. Recent advances in neurotechnology enable somatosensory feedback restoration in disabled individuals. This Perspective discusses how closing the sensory feedback loop in brain implants and nerve electrodes for stimulation may improve rehabilitation and assistive systems for patients.
2. Can neurotechnology revolutionize cognitive enhancement?

   by Ines R. Violante, Prince Okyere

   The development and implementation of neurotechnology for cognitive enhancement could spearhead a new wave of innovation in the information age. However, we argue here that this will only happen with a more fundamental understanding of human brain function. The development and implementation of neurotechnology for cognitive enhancement could spearhead a new wave of innovation. The authors argue in this Perspective that this will only happen with a more fundamental understanding of human brain function.
3. The future of transcranial ultrasound as a precision brain interface

   by Keith Murphy, Elsa Fouragnan

   Our understanding of brain circuit operations and disorders has rapidly outpaced our ability to intervene and restore them. Developing technologies that can precisely interface with any brain region and circuit may combine diagnostics with therapeutic intervention, expediting personalised brain medicine. Transcranial ultrasound stimulation (TUS) is a promising noninvasive solution to this challenge, offering focal precision and scalability. By exploiting the biomechanics of pressure waves on brain tissue, TUS enables multi-site targeted neuromodulation across distributed circuits in the cortex and deeper areas alike. In this Essay, we explore the emergent evidence that TUS can functionally test and modify dysfunctional regions, effectively serving as a search and rescue tool for the brain. We define the challenges and opportunities faced by TUS as it moves towards greater target precision and integration with advanced brain monitoring and interventional technology. Finally, we propose a roadmap for the evolution of TUS as it progresses from a research tool to a clinically validated therapeutic for brain disorders.
4. Monitoring of activity-driven trafficking of endogenous synaptic proteins through proximity labeling

   by Carlos Pascual-Caro, Jaime de Juan-Sanz

   To enable transmission of information in the brain, synaptic vesicles fuse to presynaptic membranes, liberating their content and exposing transiently a myriad of vesicular transmembrane proteins. However, versatile methods for quantifying the synaptic translocation of endogenous proteins during neuronal activity remain unavailable, as the fast dynamics of synaptic vesicle cycling difficult specific isolation trafficking proteins during such a transient surface exposure. Here, we developed a novel approach using synaptic cleft proximity labeling to capture and quantify activity-driven trafficking of endogenous synaptic proteins at the synapse. We show that accelerating cleft biotinylation times to match the fast dynamics of vesicle exocytosis allows capturing endogenous proteins transiently exposed at the synaptic surface during neural activity, enabling for the first time the study of the translocation of nearly every endogenous synaptic protein. As proof-of-concept, we further applied this technology to obtain direct evidence of the surface translocation of noncanonical trafficking proteins, such as ATG9A and NPTX1, which had been proposed to traffic during activity but for which direct proof had not yet been shown. The technological advancement presented here will facilitate future studies dissecting the molecular identity of proteins exocytosed at the synapse during activity, helping to define the molecular machinery that sustains neurotransmission in the mammalian brain.
5. The future of quantum technologies for brain imaging

   by Daniele Faccio

   The neurosciences have pioneered the use of quantum technologies for sensing and imaging the brain. Next-generation technologies promise routes towards low-cost, wearable imaging devices with high spatial and temporal resolution. The neurosciences have pioneered the use of quantum technologies for sensing and imaging the brain. This Perspective discusses next-generation technologies that promise low-cost, wearable imaging devices with high spatial and temporal resolution.