science
A technique lets scientists switch specific brain cells on or off using pulses of light, after making those cells sensitive to light with special proteins.
Optogenetics uses genetic engineering to insert light-sensitive proteins, originally found in algae, into specific neurons. Researchers then shine precisely targeted light pulses onto living tissue to switch those cells on or off almost instantly, giving an extraordinarily precise tool for testing which neurons and circuits drive particular behaviors.
Radiology centers on imaging techniques like X-rays and MRI, not turning neurons on or off. Cryogenics preserves materials at extreme low temperatures, an unrelated science with no role in controlling neural activity.
Optogenetics has moved into medical applications, including efforts to restore some light perception in blind patients by making surviving retinal cells sensitive to light, giving them a new way to sense light after original cells failed.
science
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