Roundworm Research Illuminates Ways to Reverse Anesthesia in Humans

Researchers have discovered which cells respond to anesthesia in an organism called the C. elegans, possibly revealing new ways to use existing medications to reverse anesthesia, according to a News-Medical report.

The research, published in the Dec. 20, 2011, issue of Current Biology, shows which cells and channels are important in making the anesthetic work. Led by researchers at Seattle Children’s Research Institute and Case Western Reserve University in Seattle, the study looked at the C. elegans roundworm after inserting a pigment or protein typically found in the retina of the human eye. The researchers then used a light to activate channels in the roundworm that allowed the immediate reversal of anesthetics.

The researchers believe there is a class of potassium channels in humans that are crucial to processing anesthetics and could be useful in reversing anesthesia. The researchers are continuing to look for drugs that block these channels to eventually reverse the effects of anesthesia.

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