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DAVIS (CBS SF) — Researchers at UC Davis are learning how to use lasers to erase specific memories in mice.

Humans store countless experiences, both good and bad deep inside the brain in the hippocampus.

Dr. Brian Wiltgen of the UC Davis Center for Neuroscience and Department of Psychology says that by inserting probes into the brains of mice, bad experiences could be erased using pulses of light.

“We were able to turn off a certain memory in the hippocampus in mice,” he said.

For soldiers suffering from PTSD, the treatment could eventually help erase the horrible images of war.  But, that could be decades away.

“This at the moment is not possible with humans,” Wiltgen said.

Scientists also think it may be possible to reverse the effects of Alzheimer’s Disease by stimulating the cells.