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Published online 18 November 2008 | Nature | doi:10.1038/news.2008.1238
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Nanotube 'shortcut ' boosts brain signals
But a second study finds that solutions of the tiny tubes may block neuronal activity.
Growing brain cells on scaffolds made from carbon nanotubes can boost their activity because the electrical signals they use to communicate can speed through the material, scientists have found.
The work could one day lead to nanotube scaffolds being used as 'bridges' for spinal cord injury, or as highly conductive coatings for electrodes implanted into the brain for deep brain stimulation, the researchers say.
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