Optogenetics uses LEDs to turn on potential cures

Targeting the treatment of chronic pain and other neurological disorders, the on-off switches of optogenetics are transforming neurosciences. So far used in lab animals such as mice, a wireless signal activates LEDs located near an animal’s spinal cord so that a blue light turns on genetically modified neurons, while a yellow light turns them off. This enables researchers to discover the brain paths involved in such conditions as obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) as well as depression.