Globally, about 18% of children are defined as anxious or have attention deficit problems. 10% of children suffer from various levels of attention deficit or hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Based on current practice, pharmacological interventions are effective means, but the side effects of drugs should not be underestimated. Can better alternative methods be found? The seminar on human imprinting signals held by Dr. Eytan Bar at Guangdong Technion-Israel Institute of Technology on October 29 may provide new ideas for this.

This seminar, facing faculty and students, was led by Dr. Yigal Achmon, Assistant Professor of Biotechnology and Food Engineering in GTIIT. Teachers and students from different programs actively participated in it. Prof. Lin Danming, Pro-Vice Chancellor of GTIIT; Raanan Adin, Senior Consultant to Vice-Chancellor (Innovation and Industry Relations), attended the seminar.

"Baby birds and newly born mammals, without the company of their mothers, will follow the first moving objects they see and regard it as their mother. This is a manifestation of ‘imprinting’. " Dr. Eytan Bar explained this concept with concise language and examples.

Imprinting is not only an early learning model for social animals, but also an important way to bring them a sense of safety. For example, with the mother's company, the baby will be more relaxed than usual. This is because the mother will emit her unique imprinting signal, which can regulate the hormone secretion in the baby's body and effectively relieve the baby's anxiety. Hormones, as a product of the endocrine system in the body, play an important role in the mental and physical health of the human body. Lack of energy and trouble concentrating can be caused by hormonal imbalance, which can also lead to imperfect brain development and increase the risk of mental disorder in babyhood.

However, the modern way of life makes it difficult for parents to stay with their children for a long time, which leads to the fact that children cannot get enough imprinted signals for their mental health from infancy. Can these signals be artificially produced? This is what Dr. Eytan Bar's project aims to do.

Studies have shown that attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder are directly related to anxiety, especially anxiety about abandonment, and are related to the deficiency in satisfaction of  imprinted needs in the first three years from the day of birth. Therefore, if it is possible to provide a mentally safe environment for newborns by providing replacements of imprinted signals, we can balance the baby's hormonal levels and prevent disorder development of the brain. For children suffering from ADHD and anxiety, the synthesized imprinted signals can help them build a sense of safety and reduce their disorder.

As for the future research plan, Dr. Eytan Bar said that the first group of products will target newborns and young children, and the next stage will be gradually extended to the elderly and people suffering from chronic anxiety, phobias and autism. This is planned to be one of the industry-university-research projects of Guangdong Technion-Israel Institute of Technology. Dr. Yigal Achmon will join the R&D activities by providing scientific and technical contribution to this project.

Dr. Eytan Bar holds a PhD in Biotechnology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He is a renowned environmental microbiologist in Israel and the founder of the Environmental Engineering Department of Ben-Gurion University. He has 23 years of professional experience in Environmental Epidemiology prevention, including environmental and medical microbiological control and disinfection.