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Optogenetics in psychiatric animal models

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Abstract

Optogenetics is the optical control of neuronal excitability by genetically delivered light-activated channels and pumps and represents a promising tool to fuel the study of circuit function in psychiatric animal models. This review highlights three developments. First, we examine the application of optogenetics in one of the neuromodulators central to the pathophysiology of many psychiatric disorders, the dopaminergic system. We then discuss recent work in translating functional magnetic resonance imaging in small animals (in which optogenetics can be employed to reveal physiological mechanisms underlying disease-related alterations in brain circuits) to patients. Finally, we describe emerging technological developments for circuit manipulation in freely behaving animals.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Synthetic Neurobiology Group, MIT Media Lab, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA

    Christian T. Wentz

  2. Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, University Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany

    Lars-Lennart Oettl & Wolfgang Kelsch

  3. Central Institute of Mental Health, J5, 68159, Mannheim, Germany

    Wolfgang Kelsch

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  1. Christian T. Wentz
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  2. Lars-Lennart Oettl
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  3. Wolfgang Kelsch
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Correspondence to Wolfgang Kelsch.

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The authors are supported by the DFG Emmy-Noether-Program KE1661/1-1 and DFG grant SFB636 TP B08 (to W.K.) and a fellowship of the DFG Graduate Program “Translational Neuroscience” to (L.-L.O.). C.T.W. is supported by the Hertz Foundation Myhrvold Family Fellowship.

C.T.W is chief technical officer at Kendall Research Systems, LLC.

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Wentz, C.T., Oettl, LL. & Kelsch, W. Optogenetics in psychiatric animal models. Cell Tissue Res 354, 61–68 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00441-013-1651-5

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