Scientists control a worm’s brain cells using sound waves

For the first time, scientists have directly controlled brain cells using sound waves, in a tiny laboratory worm.

They used ultrasound to trigger activity in specific neurons, causing the worms to change direction.

As well as requiring a particular gene to be expressed in the brain cells, the technique bathes the animals in tiny bubbles to amplify the sound waves. These complications temper the technique’s promise for controlling brain activity in a non-invasive way.