Peter Hegemann, Georg Nagel and Karl Deisseroth have worked together for the last 20 years to understand the implications of a naturally occurring protein in neuroscience. Optogenetics describes a tool that can induce or diminish activity within a cell in response to light.
What sounds like science fiction actually stems from two scientists who were deeply curious about an algal protein, specifically channelrhodopsin, which occurs naturally on the cell surface of Chlamydomonas algae. When the researchers inserted the protein into nerve cells, they observed that blue light stimulates the channel to open to create a positively charged ion influx, thereby generating an electrical current and stimulating neuronal communication. Similarly, halorhodopsin creates a cellular influx of negative ions responding to yellow light and preventing signaling.
This novel technology allows researchers to enter a new era of neuroscience, where an in-depth understanding of the brain and neurological disorders can finally be obtained.
