06/10/2026
đ§ đĄ āĻāϞ⧠āĻĻāĻŋā§ā§ Brain-āĻāϰ āύāĻŋāϰā§āĻĻāĻŋāώā§āĻ neuron-āĻā§ ON āĻŦāĻž OFF āĻāϰāĻž āϝāĻžā§!
āĻāĻ remarkable discovery-āĻāϰ āĻāύā§āϝ Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann āĻāĻŦāĻ Georg Nagel āĻĒā§ā§ā§āĻā§āύ 2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicineââfor their discoveries concerning light-gated ion channels and optogenetics.â
đŦ āϤāĻžāĻšāϞ⧠mechanism āĻā§?
Optogenetics-āĻ specific neurons-āĻā§ genetically light-sensitive āĻāϰāĻž āĻšā§āĨ¤ āĻāϰāĻĒāϰ āύāĻŋāϰā§āĻĻāĻŋāώā§āĻ wavelength-āĻāϰ light āĻĻāĻŋā§ā§ āϏā§āĻ neuron-āĻāϰ activity control āĻāϰāĻž āϝāĻžā§āĨ¤
đĸ Neuron ON â Activation
đĄ Blue light
â Channelrhodopsin opens
â Naâē/other cations enter
â Depolarization
â Threshold reached
â ⥠Action potential â neuron fires
āĻ
āϰā§āĻĨāĻžā§, light āĻāĻāĻāĻŋ specific neuron-āĻā§ activate āĻāϰāϤ⧠āĻĒāĻžāϰā§āĨ¤
đ´ Neuron OFF â Inhibition
đĄ Yellow light
â Halorhodopsin activates
â Clâģ is pumped into the neuron
â Hyperpolarization
â Firing threshold reach āĻāϰāĻž āĻāĻ āĻŋāύ āĻšā§
â đĢ Neuronal activity is inhibited
āĻ
āϰā§āĻĨāĻžā§, different light-sensitive opsin āĻŦā§āϝāĻŦāĻšāĻžāϰ āĻāϰ⧠neuron-āĻāϰ activity ON āĻŦāĻž OFFâāĻĻā§āĻāĻāĻžāĻŦā§āĻ control āĻāϰāĻž āϝāĻžā§āĨ¤
đŋ āĻāĻ story āĻļā§āϰ⧠āĻšā§ā§āĻāĻŋāϞ āĻā§āĻĨāĻž āĻĨā§āĻā§?
Interestingly, āĻļā§āϰā§āĻāĻž āĻāĻŋāύā§āϤ⧠human brain āĻĨā§āĻā§ āύā§âāĻāĻāĻāĻŋ single-celled green alga, Chlamydomonas reinhardtii āĻĨā§āĻā§āĨ¤
Peter Hegemann āĻ Georg Nagel āĻāĻ organism-āĻ channelrhodopsin āύāĻžāĻŽā§āϰ light-sensitive protein āύāĻŋā§ā§ āĻā§āϰā§āϤā§āĻŦāĻĒā§āϰā§āĻŖ discoveries āĻāϰā§āύāĨ¤ āĻĒāϰ⧠Karl Deisseroth āĻ colleagues āĻāĻ principle neurons-āĻ āĻĒā§āϰā§ā§āĻ āĻāϰā§āύ āĻāĻŦāĻ āĻĻā§āĻāĻžāύ āϝ⧠light āĻŦā§āϝāĻŦāĻšāĻžāϰ āĻāϰ⧠neuronal firing precisely control āĻāϰāĻž āϏāĻŽā§āĻāĻŦāĨ¤
đ§ Real-life implication āĻā§?
Optogenetics neuroscience-āĻā§ āĻļā§āϧ⧠âbrain-āĻāϰ āĻā§āύ āĻ
āĻāĻļ active?â āĻĒā§āϰāĻļā§āύ āĻĨā§āĻā§ āĻāĻāĻŋā§ā§ āύāĻŋā§ā§ āĻā§āĻā§âāĻāĻāύ researchers āĻāϰāĻ directly test āĻāϰāϤ⧠āĻĒāĻžāϰā§āύ:
âāĻāĻ āύāĻŋāϰā§āĻĻāĻŋāώā§āĻ neuron āĻŦāĻž neural circuit active āĻāϰāϞ⧠āĻā§ āĻāĻā§?â
āĻāϰ āĻŽāĻžāϧā§āϝāĻŽā§ memory, emotion, behaviour, movement āĻāĻŦāĻ āĻŦāĻŋāĻāĻŋāύā§āύ neurological āĻ psychiatric disorder-āĻāϰ underlying neural circuits āύāĻŋā§ā§ cause-and-effect āĻŦā§āĻāĻžāϰ āϏā§āϝā§āĻ āϤā§āϰāĻŋ āĻšā§ā§āĻā§āĨ¤
āĻāϰ āĻāϰ impact āĻļā§āϧ⧠laboratory research-āĻ āϏā§āĻŽāĻžāĻŦāĻĻā§āϧ āύā§āĻāĨ¤ Optogenetics āĻĨā§āĻā§ āĻĒāĻžāĻā§āĻž knowledge āύāϤā§āύ therapeutic approaches-āĻāϰ āĻĒāĻĨ āĻā§āϞā§āĻā§; āĻāĻŽāύāĻāĻŋ retinal disease-āĻ optogenetic therapy āĻŦā§āϝāĻŦāĻšāĻžāϰ āĻāϰ⧠partially restored vision-āĻāϰ clinical proof-of-concept-āĻ āĻšā§ā§āĻā§āĨ¤
āĻāĻāĻāĻŋ microscopic light-sensitive protein â neuronal control â modern neuroscience-āĻāϰ āĻāĻāĻāĻŋ revolutionary tool.
đĄ Sometimes, a Nobel-winning medical breakthrough begins with a very small questionâand a very small organism.