This is what a fish thought looks like

"In the future, we can interpret an animal's behavior, including learning and memory, fear, joy, or anger, based on the activity of particular combinations of neurons," Kawakami said.

By monitoring neuronal activity in the zebrafish brain, Kawakami thinks that researchers may also be able to screen chemicals that affect neuronal activity in the brain. "This has the potential to shorten the long processes for the development of new psychiatric medications," he said.

A double-transgenic larva was embedded in agarose, and a spot was presented on an LCD display placed on the right-eye side. Ca2+ signals were detected on the left tectum upon appearance (ON) and disappearance (OFF) of the spot. The spot was shown for the first 3 s in this 6 s movie. The video is shown at 3x real time.

(Photo Credit: Current Biology, Muto et al.)

Calcium signals are evoked by a swimming paramecium.

(Photo Credit: Current Biology, Muto et al.)

For the first time, researchers have been able to see a thought "swim" through the brain of a living fish. The new technology is a useful tool for studies of perception. It might even find use in psychiatric drug discovery, according to authors of the study, appearing online on Jan. 31 in Current Biology, a Cell Press publication.

(Photo Credit: Current Biology, Muto et al.)

Source: Cell Press