How Roger Waters Helps Israeli Technion Researchers Examine Brain Activity

“Another Brick in the Wall’s” low bass tones caused brain cells to vibrate, increased activity in specific neural regions, and triggered the release of proteins associated with cellular stimulation.

By Shula Rosen

A new study from researchers at Israel’s Technion has produced an unexpected intersection between culture and science: The low-frequency tones of a Pink Floyd classic are helping Israeli scientists explore new ways to deliver treatment to the brain.

The finding carries a certain irony, given that Roger Waters, the band’s co-founder, is known for outspoken anti-Israel activism and support of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement. Yet it is his music — specifically “Another Brick in the Wall” — that became central assisting Israeli researchers in an experiment examining how sound frequencies influence brain cell activity.

The research team, led by Prof. Avi Schroeder and Dr. Patricia Mora-Raimundo, set out to test whether certain sound patterns could prompt biological changes inside the brain.

To do that, they exposed human volunteers and laboratory mice to the song while measuring the response of brain cells.

Volunteers listened to various musical tracks inside an MRI scanner, allowing scientists to monitor how different regions of the brain reacted to each frequency.

The Pink Floyd recording produced a clear effect. According to the researchers, the song’s low bass tones caused brain cells to vibrate, increased activity in specific neural regions, and triggered the release of proteins associated with cellular stimulation.

Those shifts matter because they may help overcome one of the biggest obstacles in treating neurological diseases: getting medication past the blood-brain barrier, the membrane that shields the brain from harmful substances but also blocks most drugs.

One of the most promising delivery tools is the lipid nanoparticle, a microscopic bubble small enough that thousands can line up across the width of a human hair.

These particles are already being studied for their ability to carry genetic material into cells.

The Technion team found that when brain cells were activated by low-frequency sound, their uptake of lipid nanoparticles rose sharply — in some cases by as much as tenfold.

Prof. Schroeder compared the effect to familiar physical sensations. “When you go into a dance hall and hear the thump-thump-thump of the bass, it feels as though your body is vibrating. That is what is happening to the brain when Pink Floyd is played,” he said in a press release.

He added that “this low-frequency sound could be a valuable tool for enhancing drug delivery to specific brain areas,” and may open possibilities for “targeted treatment of neurological disorders such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.”

Current therapies for these diseases remain limited, often slowing decline but not repairing damage. The new findings suggest that carefully controlled sound — including the deep tones of a rock song — may eventually help guide treatments more precisely to the cells that need them.

The study, published in the Journal of Controlled Release, found that among the music tested, the Pink Floyd track generated the strongest response in the regions connected to potential treatment pathways.