Born on August 20th, 1913 Roger Sperry would become a noted neuropsychologist and neurobiologist. His greatest impact to the world of science would come with his work in split-brain research along with David Hubel and Torsten Wiesel. Split-brain is the lay term for corpus callosotomy which is a severing of the corpus callosum. The corpus callosum is the bundle of nerve fibers connecting both hemispheres of the brain. Initially performed in the 1950s this procedure was effective in treating epilepsy. Its use has been targeted at people who have seizures so severe they have a high likelihood of injuring themselves.
The treatment has proven successful, but with an unanticipated issue which Sperry researched and documented resulting in a Nobel Prize which he shared with Hubel and Wiesel in 1981. He found that each hemisphere could, in essence, function independent of the other sometimes resulting in conflict. Some patients were seen to have "fights" between their arms, each moving with a different agenda.
His research and understanding of the split-brain would guide treatments for the condition for decades to come, however in a sad twist of ironic fate Sperry would succumb to Kuru which he contracted working on brains. The rare disease is degenerate and only passed through contact or consumption of infected organs. By the time he received the Nobel Prize he was already suffering the affects of the illness. He finally succumbed to it in 1994 at the age of 80.
His theories and research helped to lay the foundation for our current understanding of the brain and its functions. Unfortunately he paid the ultimate price for the research that will continue to help many for decades to come.
-Professor Walter
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Posted by: Nel | 01/30/2011 at 05:46 PM