Instead of surgery that requires drilling holes in the skull and inserting electrodes deep into the brain, researchers from the Institute for Basic Science (IBS) have announced a significant breakthrough in the treatment of Parkinson's disease.

The team, led by Professors Cheon Jin-woo and Kwak Min-suk of the Center for Nanomedicine, developed a "Magneto-mechanical-genetic-driven Deep Brain Stimulation," which uses magnetic fields to activate nerve cells in the deep brain, enabling effective treatment of Parkinson's disease.

Parkinson's disease is a type of degenerative brain disease in which dopamine neurons die, resulting in symptoms of movement disorders such as tremors, rigidity, and postural instability.

The number of patients is increasing rapidly in modern aging society, but there is no cure. For severe patients who have difficulty living with medication, DBS (deep brain stimulation) is a surgical procedure that aims to relieve symptoms.

To address these challenges, the IBS team applied nanotechnology and magneto-genetics to stimulate specific neurons in the brain.

Their approach involves injecting magnetic nanoparticles into the deep brain. These particles generate a force of about two piconewtons in response to an external magnetic field, which then activates the Piezo-1 ion channels on the surface of targeted nerve cells, stimulating neuronal activity.

The magneto-genetic device, similar in size to MRI machines (with a central diameter of 70cm), can deliver magnetic stimulation non-invasively to the brain's deep regions.

In experiments with Parkinson's-afflicted mice, stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus led to a more than tenfold increase in neural activity in the targeted area.

The treatment significantly improved balance and mobility, nearly restoring normal motor function.

Notably, after two weeks of daily stimulation, the mice retained about 35 percent of their regained motor abilities even 24 hours after the stimulation ceased, indicating a lasting effect beyond the immediate stimulation period.

"Our use of magneto-mechanical-genetic technology demonstrates the possibility of alleviating Parkinson's symptoms in a non-invasive and precise manner, unlike traditional DBS methods," Professor Cheon said. "We look forward to its use in the research and treatment of a variety of neurological diseases, including Parkinson's, epilepsy, and Alzheimer's."

The study results were published in Nano Letters.