NIH funds researchers using light to control and monitor neural activity

(University of Texas at Arlington) Samarendra Mohanty, assistant professor of physics at The University of Texas at Arlington, expects to receive a total of $384,269 over the next two years from the NIH's National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. His work involves using a near-infrared ultrafast laser beam to deliver genes that allow expression of light-sensitive proteins, called opsins, in specific cells. That proteins' expression allows researchers to influence neural activity through optical or light stimulation -- a technique known as optogenetics.
Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health - Category: Global & Universal Source Type: news