See How Light Switches Neurons On

A protein from green algae became a switch for nerve cells.

Researchers put its gene into selected neurons. The cells make a light-sensitive channel. Blue light opens it. Charged particles flow in. A nerve signal can follow.

This is optogenetics. It helps researchers test how specific cells shape brain activity.

Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann and Georg Nagel won the 2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for this work. The award was announced on 5 October. Read the science behind it.

I built an interactive page to make the idea easier to see. Explore an alga. Then explore a neuron. Rotate the models. Click a structure. Switch on blue light and watch the voltage trace.

Start with the alga. Follow the protein. See how light becomes a signal.

Explore optogenetics.