Optogenetics articles within Nature

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  • Article
    | Open Access

    Measurements of signal propagation in more than 23,000 pairs of neurons from nematode worms show that predictions of neural function made on the basis of anatomy are often incorrect, in part owing to the effects of extrasynaptic signalling.

    • Francesco Randi
    • , Anuj K. Sharma
    •  & Andrew M. Leifer

  • Letter |

    An optogenetic strategy allowing light-mediated recruitment of distinct cytoskeletal motor proteins to specific organelles is established; this technique enabled rapid and reversible activation or inhibition of the transport of organelles such as peroxisomes, recycling endosomes and mitochondria with high spatiotemporal accuracy, and the approach was also applied to primary neurons to demonstrate optical control of axonal growth by recycling endosome repositioning.

    • Petra van Bergeijk
    • , Max Adrian
    •  & Lukas C. Kapitein

  • Letter |

    Optogenetic induction of phasic, but not tonic, firing in VTA dopamine neurons induces susceptibility to stress in mice undergoing a subthreshold social-defeat paradigm and in previously resilient mice that have been subjected to repeated social-defeat stress, and this effect is projection-pathway specific.

    • Dipesh Chaudhury
    • , Jessica J. Walsh
    •  & Ming-Hu Han

  • News & Views |

    When expressed in neurons, channelrhodopsin proteins allow the cells' electrical activity to be controlled by light. The structure of one such protein will guide efforts to make better tools for controlling neurons. See Article p.369

    • Oliver P. Ernst
    •  & Thomas P. Sakmar

  • Letter |

    The amygdala, a brain region important for learning fearful memories, is thought to have a role in generalized anxiety, but the critical subregions and connections are unknown. This paper shows that optogenetic stimulation of basolateral amygdala (BLA) terminals in the central nucleus of the amygdala of rats with channelrhodopsin has an anxiolytic effect, whereas inhibition of the same projection with eNpHR3.0 increases anxiety related behaviours. These effects were not observed with direct optogenetic control of BLA somata themselves, indicating that selective activation of certain connections can have different effects.

    • Kay M. Tye
    • , Rohit Prakash
    •  & Karl Deisseroth

  • Letter |

    Blood oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) signals are the basis for much of the work on which regions of the human brain are active during particular tasks or behaviours, but there is controversy over their source and interpretation. Here a combination of optogenetics and BOLD signal monitoring shows that specific excitatory neurons within a mixed population are sufficient to produce positive BOLD signals, and could be used to map connections.

    • Jin Hyung Lee
    • , Remy Durand
    •  & Karl Deisseroth

  • News & Views |

    Analysis of a selected class of neuron in the brains of live animals using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) opens the door to mapping genetically specified neural circuits.

    • David A. Leopold

  • News Feature |

    Systems neuroscientists are pushing aside their electrophysiology rigs to make room for the tools of 'optogenetics'. Lizzie Buchen reports from a field in the process of reinvention.

    • Lizzie Buchen

  • Letter |

    If the activity of genetically specified neurons is silenced in a temporally precise fashion, the roles of different cell classes in neural processes can be studied. Members of the class of light-driven outward proton pumps are now shown to mediate powerful, safe, multiple-colour silencing of neural activity. The gene archaerhodopsin-3 (Arch) enables near 100% silencing of neurons in the awake brain when virally expressed in the mouse cortex and illuminated with yellow light.

    • Brian Y. Chow
    • , Xue Han
    •  & Edward S. Boyden

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