👉🏻Optogenetics – the use of 👉🏻optically-activated proteins👈🏻 to 👉🏻control 👉🏻neuronal function – is a recent development in neuroscience methodology. Optogenetic techniques provide a means of 👉🏻activating or 👉🏻inhibiting distinct populations of 👉🏻neurons with an unprecedented degree of spatial, temporal, and neurochemical precision. Channelrhodopsin-2 (ChR2), an algal protein👈🏻 from Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, is a 👉🏻light-activated cation channel capable of inducing👈🏻👉🏻 depolarization and 👉🏻action potentials in neurons.

Three primary components in the application of optogenetics are as follows (A) Identification or synthesis of a light-sensitive protein (opsin) such as channelrhodopsin-2 (ChR2), halorhodopsin (NpHR), etc... (B) 👉🏻The design of a system to introduce the 👉🏻genetic material containing the 👉🏻opsin 👉🏻into 👉🏻cells for protein expression👈🏻 such as application of Cre recombinase or

an 👉🏻adeno-associated-virus (C) application of light emitting instruments.