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How Pond Algae Sparked a Nobel Prize and Revolutionized Brain Research
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News18•06-10-2026, 12:45
How Pond Algae Sparked a Nobel Prize and Revolutionized Brain Research
- •Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann, and Georg Nagel won the Nobel prize in physiology or medicine for their research on light-gated ion channels and optogenetics.
- •Researchers discovered that a single-celled alga called Chlamydomonas uses a light-sensing protein called channelrhodopsin to navigate towards or away from light.
- •By inserting channelrhodopsin into nerve cells, scientists realized they could control brain cell activity simply by shining light on them.
- •Optogenetics allows scientists to switch specific groups of nerve cells on and off with high precision, transforming how researchers study brain function and memory.
- •The technology is currently in clinical trials to restore vision in patients with retinal degeneration and is being explored as a treatment for neurological disorders like Parkinson's and epilepsy.
Key Questions Answered
Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann, and Georg Nagel won the Nobel prize in physiology or medicine for their research into light-gated ion channels and optogenetics.
Channelrhodopsin uses a molecule called retinaldehyde that changes shape when hit by light. This shape change opens a passage in the cell membrane, allowing positively charged particles like sodium to flow inside and signal the alga to swim.
Optogenetics is a technique that uses light to control nerve cells. Scientists deliver the gene for channelrhodopsin into specific nerve cells using an altered virus and then shine light on them via an optical fibre to activate them and observe behavioral impacts.
