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Optogenetics

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Neuroscience in the 21st Century

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Abstract

As its name implies, optogenetics comprises a technological platform consisting of development and a combined implementation of optical and genetic methods for studying neural contributions to behavior. Since its inception a decade ago, it has rapidly grown to become a popular and robust technology, leading to many novel findings that have advanced our knowledge regarding the neurobiological basis of behavior and illuminated important roles for brain circuits and their activity in a number of disease states. Nevertheless, these first decade contributions reflect the “tip of the iceberg,” with optogenetics and its applications poised to produce more significant future advances in neuroscience research, and perhaps even in development of optogenetic-based technologies for human disease therapeutics. This chapter will provide a brief historical background of optogenetics, followed by a narrative on the technology and a review of influential discoveries that have emerged from its application. Finally, a commentary regarding the future of optogenetics in relation to technological innovations, extending its utility to advance basic neuroscience research, and its potential implementation to brain disease therapeutics will be presented.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Biobehavioral Imaging and Molecular Neuropsychopharmacology Unit, National Institute on Drug Abuse Intramural Research Program, Baltimore, MD, USA

    Michael Michaelides

  2. Synaptic Plasticity Section, National Institute on Drug Abuse Intramural Research Program, Baltimore, MD, 21224, USA

    Antonello Bonci

Authors
  1. Michael Michaelides
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  2. Antonello Bonci
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Michael Michaelides .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Neurobiology and Behavior, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY, USA

    Donald W. Pfaff

  2. National Institute on Drug Abuse, Rockville, MD, USA

    Nora D. Volkow

  3. Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA

    John L. Rubenstein

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Michaelides, M., Bonci, A. (2022). Optogenetics. In: Pfaff, D.W., Volkow, N.D., Rubenstein, J.L. (eds) Neuroscience in the 21st Century. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-88832-9_172

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