According to recently published results in PLoS One, researchers at the Medical College of Georgia (MCG) and East China Normal University have genetically engineered a rat to be significantly smarter than its peers. The rat was named Hobbie J, after the popular Chinese cartoon. Lest you think the world is determined to try to turn all children’s fiction into reality, let me assure you that that we are far from a Secret of NIMH type scenario. Hobbie J has better memory and improved learning skills but only moderately so. The real news is that scientists have a better understanding of how one gene (NR2B) affects the brains of mammals. Using this sort of information, researchers may one day find a means to reverse dementia or increase human intelligence.

Your brain has a set of receptors known as NMDA which help with memory formation and learning. When you are younger, the NR2B gene helps control these receptors, but after puberty, the NR2A gene tends to take over. The difference between the two is slight: NR2B helps receptors stay active for just milliseconds longer, but that’s enough to have a noticeable effect. The switch between expressed genes is part of the reason why we seem to learn so quickly and easily in our youth, but have difficulty with new concepts as we age. Patients with Alzheimer’s disease, and some cases of dementia, have correspondingly disrupted levels in their NMDA receptors. Researchers hope that by studying the way that genes regulate the receptors in rats, they will be able to predict and effect similar changes in humans. This could lead to genetic engineering, or a chemical treatment, which may give someone ‘youthful learning’ throughout their entire life.

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