Optogenetics wins the Nobel – one neuroscience breakthrough in a line of technological innovations helping scientists map and control the brain

Neuroscientific advances follow a pattern of visualizing the brain, measuring its function and then controlling it. Optogenetics may lead to a new era of medical treatment.

By: Kimberlee D'Ardenne, Arizona State University, The Conversation

Outlets: The Conversation

Published: October 5, 2026

Words: 1,254

Last Updated: 1 week, 4 days ago

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By Kimberlee D'Ardenne, Arizona State University

The brain is unbelievably complicated, which is both daunting and fascinating for neuroscientists like me. In the space of a cubic millimeter – about the size of a single poppy seed – there are tens of thousands of neurons and other brain support cells, all influencing each other’s function.

How do neuroscientists make sense of this complexity? And how did they get to the point where they could …

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