Optogenetics articles from across Nature Portfolio

This protocol for the spatiotemporal control of RNA activity uses LicV, a synthetic, photoswitchable RNA-binding protein (RBP) that can bind to a specific RNA sequence in response to blue light irradiation, and provides an efficient and generalizable strategy for engineering photoswitchable RBPs.

An open source, 96-well plate reader allows simultaneous optogenetic stimulation and absorbance/fluorescence measurements in each well.

Two optogenetic methods for vagus-nerve stimulation, via the selective expression of opsins in either subdiaphragmatic or pancreas-innervating nerve fibres, led to enhanced glucose-stimulated insulin secretion and β cell proliferation in mice.

Opto-SCIM combines scanning ion conductance microscopy with optogenetic interrogation to study the hetero-cellular interactions between cardiac fibroblasts or myofibroblasts and cardiomyocytes.

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.

The transcriptional regulator YAP controls cellular decisions such as proliferation, differentiation, and pluripotency. Here, the authors show a concentration-dependent and temporal communication code for YAP that enables cells to choose between these programs.

Legnini et al. report in Nature Methods their new optogenetic method for controlling gene expression in organoids that can be coupled with single-cell and spatial transcriptomics.

We developed fatigue-resistant hydrogel optical fibers through the controlled growth of polymeric nanocrystalline domains to enable light delivery to peripheral nerves during locomotion. The hydrogel fibers withstand locomotion strain across more than 30,000 fiber stretch cycles and enable the optogenetic inhibition of pain hypersensitivity in naturally behaving mice.

New red–green optogenetic dimerizers enable the switching on and off of gene expression with high spatiotemporal precision.

Mitochondrial dysfunction is central in biological aging, but experimentally controlling mitochondria in vivo to test causality has been difficult. Optogenetically preserving mitochondrial function with age addressed this difficulty and increased lifespan and healthspan in Caenorhabditis elegans.

Researchers have discovered two naturally occurring channelrhodopsins for potassium ion transport that can be used in optogenetic applications.