optogenetics
Sign in to saveOptogenetics is a biological technique used to characterize and manipulate the activity of neurons or other cell types with light. This is achieved by expression of light-sensitive ion channels, pumps or enzymes in the target brain cells.
Article
29 sectionsContents
- History
- Description
- Technique
- Technical challenges
- Selective expression
- Kinetics and synchronization
- Light absorption spectrum
- Spatial response
- Applications
- Identification of particular neurons and networks
- Amygdala
- Olfactory bulb
- Nucleus accumbens
- Prefrontal cortex
- Heart
- Spiral ganglion
- Brainstem
- Visual system
- Sensorimotor system
- Precise temporal control of interventions
- Hippocampus
- Cellular biology/cell signaling pathways
- Photosensitive proteins used in various cell signaling pathways
- Temporal control of signal transduction with light
- Optogenetic noise-photostimulation
- Awards
- References
- Further reading
- External links
Optogenetics is a biological technique used to characterize and manipulate the activity of neurons or other cell types with light. This is achieved by expression of light-sensitive ion channels, pumps or enzymes in the target brain cells.
On the level of individual cells, light-activated enzymes and transcription factors allow precise control of biochemical signaling pathways. In systems neuroscience, the ability to control the activity of a genetically defined set of neurons has been used to understand their contribution to decision making, learning, fear memory, mating, addiction, feeding, and locomotion. In a medical application of optogenetic technology, vision was partially restored in a blind patient with retinitis pigmentosa.