Researchers at Duke University School of Medicine have developed a custom-built biological “wire” that can bypass broken brain connections, potentially leading to new treatments for neurological disorders. The technology, called LinCx, allows scientists to create new electrical connections between carefully chosen neurons with cellular-level precision.
Kafui Dzirasa, MD, Ph.D., led the research team that developed LinCx. According to Dzirasa, the new approach enables selective, long-lasting changes in how defined brain circuits function, unlike existing tools that often influence many cells at once.
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The study, published in Nature, demonstrates the system’s versatility in both worms and mice. In worms, adding new connections altered temperature-seeking behavior, while in mice, targeted electrical connections strengthened communication within specific circuits and produced measurable changes in behavior.
LinCx is based on proteins originally found in fish that naturally form electrical synapses. Using protein engineering, the researchers redesigned these molecules to dock only with a matching engineered partner and not with native brain proteins.
The team used laboratory screening, including a newly developed fluorescence-based assay, to identify pairs with high specificity that reliably passed electrical signals between cells. This approach overcomes the limitations of existing tools, such as drugs, electrical stimulation, and optogenetics, which typically affect broad populations of cells.
According to the researchers, LinCx may be able to improve on these tools without requiring external stimulation. The next step will be to test whether LinCx is powerful enough to override synaptic deficits induced by lifelong genetic disruptions.
In a statement, Dzirasa said, “By introducing a way to plug in new electrical connections with cellular-level precision, our study marks a major step forward in the ability to edit brain circuitry and understand how neural networks give rise to behavior.”
The research was published in the journal Nature on 2026, with the DOI number 10.1038/s41586-026-10501-y. The study’s findings have implications for the treatment of neurological disorders, including stress resilience.
At 9:00 AM on the day of the study’s publication, the researchers gathered in room 314 to discuss the results. The team’s work was supported by grants from several organizations, including the National Institutes of Health.
In animal models, the custom connections altered neural circuit function and behavior, including stress resilience, demonstrating precise, cell-type-specific control over brain circuitry. The researchers used fluorescence-based assays to measure the effectiveness of the new connections.
While the study’s findings are promising, more research is needed to fully understand the potential of LinCx in treating neurological disorders. The researchers plan to continue testing the technology in various animal models to determine its safety and efficacy.
The development of LinCx is a significant step forward in the field of neuroscience, and its potential applications are being closely watched by experts in the field. As one researcher noted, “the ability to precisely control communication between specific cell types is a major breakthrough.”
The study’s authors include Elizabeth Ransey et al., who published their findings in Nature under the title “Long-term editing of brain circuits using an engineered electrical synapse.”
In the coming months, the researchers will continue to refine LinCx and explore its potential applications in treating neurological disorders. With its ability to precisely control brain circuitry, LinCx may one day become a valuable tool in the treatment of stress and other neurological conditions.
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