"Researchers led by Columbia University's Kristin Baldwin have created mice with hybrid brains -- part mouse, part rat -- that sense the odors of the world with their rat neurons.
It is the first time that an animal has been able to use the sensory apparatus of another to sense and respond accurately to the world and is one indication of how flexible the brain can be in integrating outside brain cells.
"This research is starting to show us how we can expand the flexibility of a brain so that it can accommodate other kinds of inputs, from human-machine interfaces or transplanted stem cells," says Baldwin, professor of genetics and development at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons."
