Screenshots from the game version of Mighty Microglia: Pruning for Balance, 2019.
Mighty Microglia: Pruning for Balance, 2019
Ellen Sandor & (art)n: Diana Torres and Azadeh Gholizadeh; and Chris Collins
Beth Stevens, The Stevens Lab: Lasse Dissing-Olesen
Special thanks: Caleb Sandor Taub
Steven's Lab at Boston Children's Hospital and The Stanley Center at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard
Virtual Reality Installation/Oculus Rift
In this 2D game, the Mighty Microglia is juxtaposed with imagery from Eliot Porter’s Intimate Landscapes Portfolio. Porter’s visceral portraits of trees is a metaphor for pruning the synapses of the human brain. Microglia are the primary immune cells of the central nervous system that are in charge of pruning synapses. During synaptic pruning, the brain eliminates extra synapses–brain structures that allow neurons to transmit electrical or chemical signals to another neuron. Synaptic pruning is thought to be the brain’s way of removing connections in the brain that are no longer needed. The player has to find that balance by directing microglia to correctly prune the right amount of synapses. If microglia prune too many synapses, the sound, color and light begin to disappear. If microglia prune too little, the sound, color and light overwhelm the player. By engaging the player's senses, they will be able to direct microglia to find the balance in the human brain.
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