Because of the dim lighting, the bad neurons form contacts with each other and bad at remembering new information.

Hippocampal neuron: dendrites are painted green, red dots, dendritic spines, potential interneuronal contacts, blue colored heifers cells. (Photo: Shelley Halpain / UC San Diego.)

That memory was right, the brain needs a lot of light about this in his article in the journal Hippocampus write researchers from the University of Michigan. Experimenting with herbal mice, but as they lead a day life, it is likely that the findings apply to other fluorescent animals, including to humans.

Rodents for four weeks was kept in a room with light or 1000 Lux, which corresponds to a cloudy day, or 50 suites, which corresponds, for example, a regular light in the bathroom or toilet. A month later it turned out that the mice that lived under the dim light, was not working properly, the hippocampus, one of the main centers of memory and spatial orientation . According to the authors, due to the poor lighting in mice at 30% reduced capacity of the hippocampus: it is worse form new neural connections necessary for remembering new information, and the animals themselves less focused on the ground.

What neurons it has become difficult to form new contacts, was obviously due to the fact that in the brain decreased the amount of protein called neurotrophic factor to the brain. It stimulates the growth and development of neurons, it helps nerve cells to form and strengthen synapses; if this protein factor becomes small, and the new nerve chain does not appear, therefore, suffer memory and learning ability.

However, the changes were reversible: if the mice in the dim light was replaced by normal, and the hippocampus, and the ability to navigate in space came back to normal.

Of course, the results would be good to check on the people, and at the same time to find out what other cognitive abilities sensitive to lack of light. Although, of course, it is unlikely there are those among us who lives for weeks in the toilet or in the bathroom, but it is undeniable that many people most of the time in the premises, and lighting in areas often leaves much to be desired.

And perhaps with even dim artificial light, some effects still take place, albeit not very pronounced. Here, by the way, you can remember the research staff at northwestern University, who several years ago found a link between illumination and metabolism – it turned out that the man just starts to get fat, if not getting enough light.