Writing false memories may not suitable for sci-fi, after all

By Kim Eun-ji

For many, erasing painful memories like Clementine in “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” (2004) may be appealing, but improbable. How about Douglass in “Total Recall” (1990) ­ would anyone be interested in getting a virtual holiday memory like him?

Whether interested or not, human beings are a step closer to experiencing that reality.

Studies have found that new memories are not restored when brain parts responsible for neurotransmission are inactive. Certain nerve cells, when stimulated, will make relevant emotions like horror go away. The issue was how to stimulate precisely without excessively influencing other parts of the brain.

Using light and protein, lab researchers at Stanford University discovered channelrhodopsin, a kind of protein gene that opens up with lights and closes without, in 2005.

With light, the protein will open up the channels, stimulating the cell with extra positive ions that move into the cell, according to Karl Deisseroth Lab of the university. This can affect human body like other external stimulations.

Four years later, Gero Miesenbock at Oxford University successfully “wrote” memories in flies to dislike specific scent without having smelled it before.

“Tests with mice proved that it was possible to erase memories but we are still figuring out whether it’s applicable to all brain-related illnesses such as depression,” said Dr. Lee Chang-joon, a vice-director of Center for Functional Connectomics at Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST).

It may take awhile to apply it to humans, however, as using transmitters that control genes is banned, Lee said.