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Measured the electronic work of the brain

25.12.2014

Scientists from the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne were able to not only observe but also measure the synaptic transmission in an animal thanks to the method of optogenetics. This method uses light to precisely control the activity of specific neurons.

Scientists have been able to observe synaptic transmission in the brain of an animal for the first time thanks to optogenetics - the combination of genetics with the physics of light.

The cells of the nervous system (neurons) communicate by passing chemical compounds to each other through synapses. Synaptic transmission is important for the brain and spinal cord to quickly process a huge amount of incoming signals. At the same time, it is extremely difficult to study synaptic transmission in a living organism.

Scientists from the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL) have been able to not only observe but also measure synaptic transmission in an animal thanks to the method of optogenetics. This method uses light to precisely control the activity of specific neurons. Optogenetics involves the introduction of special channels into the membrane of nerve cells - opsins that respond to excitation by light.

During the experiments, when blue light hits the neurons containing the light-sensitive protein, the neurons are activated and fire signals. At the same time, the scientists measured electrical signals in nearby neurons using microelectrodes that can record small changes in voltage.

The scientists also used cutting-edge imaging to look deep into the brains of mice and determine the type of each interneuron they study. The data showed that neuronal transmissions from light-sensitive neurons differed depending on the type of interneurons.

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