Definition and research guide
This page combines a MeSH definition, publication statistics and selected research abstracts. It is a starting point for reading the literature, not a medical textbook or a systematic evidence review.
Content available: 4 complete abstracts (634 words), 10 references. Full article text is not stored or reproduced here; follow the PMID, DOI or PMC links to read the original sources and their access terms.
Definition
The combination of genetic and optical methods in controlling specific events with temporal precision in targeted cells of a functioning intact biological system.
Definition: NLM Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) scope note (Public domain (U.S. National Library of Medicine); attribution requested). View the MeSH record.
Also known as: Optogenetic; Optogenetic Techniques; Optogenetic Technique; Technique, Optogenetic; Techniques, Optogenetic.
Where it fits in the MeSH classification
- Broader topics
- Genetic Techniques
Research landscape
PubMed indexes 6,678 records tagged with the MeSH heading “Optogenetics” (counts retrieved 2026-10-29). 3,653 of them (54.7%) were published from 2020 onward, and the busiest period so far is 2020 onward with 3,653 records.
Reviews account for 901 records (13.5%) and meta-analyses for 0. Randomized controlled trials number 1 (0.0%) as a share of all records on the topic. Randomized trials make up only a small share of this literature, so much of what is known comes from laboratory, observational or descriptive work.
Show the data
| Period | Records |
|---|---|
| through 1999 | 0 |
| 2000-2009 | 0 |
| 2010-2019 | 3,098 |
| 2020 onward | 3,653 |
Publication-type chart data
| Type | Records | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Reviews | 901 | 13.5% |
| Meta-analyses | 0 | 0.0% |
| Randomized controlled trials | 1 | 0.0% |
Method: PubMed query "Optogenetics"[MeSH Terms] with publication-type and date filters, retrieved 2026-10-29.
Reading the evidence in genetics and genomics
Genetic findings vary widely in strength. A variant linked to a condition in one study may not replicate in other ancestries, and most common variants have small effects that are meaningful only in aggregate. Studies of rare, high-impact variants can support strong causal claims about a gene, while association studies describe statistical links that need functional and independent replication. Check the sample size, the ancestry of participants, whether results were replicated, and whether a laboratory or clinical outcome was actually measured.
Evidence from open-access studies
These open-access studies come from PubMed’s best-match results for this heading (papers whose main topic it is), ranked here by citation count, with one recent addition. Each abstract is reproduced in full under its recorded open licence so that you can read the authors’ own words. They illustrate the literature; they are not a systematic summary of it. Citation counts measure attention, not reliability or clinical benefit.
| Study / authors | Year | Source label / design | Europe PMC citations | Licence / source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tonic and burst-like locus coeruleus stimulation distinctly shift network activity across the cortical hierarchy | 2024 | Research article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 91 | cc by PMID 39284964 · DOI · PMC11537968 |
| Spatiotemporal, optogenetic control of gene expression in organoids | 2023 | Research article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 76 | cc by PMID 37735569 · DOI · PMC10555836 |
| Spatiotemporally resolved colorectal oncogenesis in mini-colons ex vivo | 2024 | Research article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 73 | cc by PMID 38658753 · DOI · PMC11078756 |
| Efficient and sustained optogenetic control of sensory and cardiac systems | 2026 | Research article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 17 | cc by PMID 40721511 · DOI · PMC12920086 |
Tonic and burst-like locus coeruleus stimulation distinctly shift network activity across the cortical hierarchy [1]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- Noradrenaline (NA) release from the locus coeruleus (LC) changes activity and connectivity in neuronal networks across the brain, modulating multiple behavioral states.
- Closing excerpt
- Together, these findings reveal how the LC-NA system achieves a nuanced regulation of global circuit operations.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (145 words)
Noradrenaline (NA) release from the locus coeruleus (LC) changes activity and connectivity in neuronal networks across the brain, modulating multiple behavioral states. NA release is mediated by both tonic and burst-like LC activity. However, it is unknown whether the functional changes in target areas depend on these firing patterns. Using optogenetics, photometry, electrophysiology and functional magnetic resonance imaging in mice, we show that tonic and burst-like LC firing patterns elicit brain responses that hinge on their distinct NA release dynamics. During moderate tonic LC activation, NA release engages regions associated with associative processing, while burst-like stimulation biases the brain toward sensory processing. These activation patterns locally couple with increased astrocytic and inhibitory activity and change the brain's topological configuration in line with the hierarchical organization of the cerebral cortex. Together, these findings reveal how the LC-NA system achieves a nuanced regulation of global circuit operations.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 39284964 · DOI · PMC11537968
Spatiotemporal, optogenetic control of gene expression in organoids [2]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- Organoids derived from stem cells have become an increasingly important tool for studying human development and modeling disease.
- Closing excerpt
- With this study, we propose optogenetic perturbations in combination with spatial transcriptomics as a powerful technology to reprogram and study cell fates and tissue patterning in organoids.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (131 words)
Organoids derived from stem cells have become an increasingly important tool for studying human development and modeling disease. However, methods are still needed to control and study spatiotemporal patterns of gene expression in organoids. Here we combined optogenetics and gene perturbation technologies to activate or knock-down RNA of target genes in programmable spatiotemporal patterns. To illustrate the usefulness of our approach, we locally activated Sonic Hedgehog (SHH) signaling in an organoid model for human neurodevelopment. Spatial and single-cell transcriptomic analyses showed that this local induction was sufficient to generate stereotypically patterned organoids and revealed new insights into SHH's contribution to gene regulation in neurodevelopment. With this study, we propose optogenetic perturbations in combination with spatial transcriptomics as a powerful technology to reprogram and study cell fates and tissue patterning in organoids.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 37735569 · DOI · PMC10555836
Spatiotemporally resolved colorectal oncogenesis in mini-colons ex vivo [3]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- Three-dimensional organoid culture technologies have revolutionized cancer research by allowing for more realistic and scalable reproductions of both tumour and microenvironmental structures1-3.
- Closing excerpt
- As a whole, our study paves the way for cancer initiation research outside living organisms.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (217 words)
Three-dimensional organoid culture technologies have revolutionized cancer research by allowing for more realistic and scalable reproductions of both tumour and microenvironmental structures1-3. This has enabled better modelling of low-complexity cancer cell behaviours that occur over relatively short periods of time4. However, available organoid systems do not capture the intricate evolutionary process of cancer development in terms of tissue architecture, cell diversity, homeostasis and lifespan. As a consequence, oncogenesis and tumour formation studies are not possible in vitro and instead require the extensive use of animal models, which provide limited spatiotemporal resolution of cellular dynamics and come at a considerable cost in terms of resources and animal lives. Here we developed topobiologically complex mini-colons that are able to undergo tumorigenesis ex vivo by integrating microfabrication, optogenetic and tissue engineering approaches. With this system, tumorigenic transformation can be spatiotemporally controlled by directing oncogenic activation through blue-light exposure, and emergent colon tumours can be tracked in real-time at the single-cell resolution for several weeks without breaking the culture. These induced mini-colons display rich intratumoural and intertumoural diversity and recapitulate key pathophysiological hallmarks displayed by colorectal tumours in vivo. By fine-tuning cell-intrinsic and cell-extrinsic parameters, mini-colons can be used to identify tumorigenic determinants and pharmacological opportunities. As a whole, our study paves the way for cancer initiation research outside living organisms.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 38658753 · DOI · PMC11078756
Efficient and sustained optogenetic control of sensory and cardiac systems [4]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- Optogenetic control is used to manipulate the activity of specific cell types in vivo for a variety of biological and clinical applications.
- Closing excerpt
- Toward optogenetic hearing restoration, ChReef enables stimulation of the auditory pathway in rodents and non-human primates with nanojoule thresholds, enabling efficient and frequency-specific stimulation by LED-based optical cochlear implants.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (141 words)
Optogenetic control is used to manipulate the activity of specific cell types in vivo for a variety of biological and clinical applications. Here we report ChReef, an improved variant of the channelrhodopsin ChRmine. ChReef offers minimal photocurrent desensitization, a unitary conductance of 80 fS and closing kinetics of 30 ms, which together enable reliable optogenetic control of cells at low light levels with good temporal fidelity and sustained stimulation. We demonstrate efficient and reliable red-light pacing and depolarization block of ChReef-expressing cardiomyocyte clusters. We used adeno-associated-virus-based gene transfer to express ChReef in retinal ganglion cells, where it restores visual function in blind mice with light sources as weak as an iPad screen. Toward optogenetic hearing restoration, ChReef enables stimulation of the auditory pathway in rodents and non-human primates with nanojoule thresholds, enabling efficient and frequency-specific stimulation by LED-based optical cochlear implants.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 40721511 · DOI · PMC12920086
Key reviews and meta-analyses
The most cited review-type papers among PubMed’s best-match results for this heading, listed with bibliographic details only. Follow the links for the full text and access terms.
- Research article Optogenetics: 10 years of microbial opsins in neuroscience [5]
- Research article Emerging Targets in Photopharmacology [6]
- Research article Genetic Dissection of Neural Circuits: A Decade of Progress [7]
- Research article Optochemical Control of Biological Processes in Cells and Animals [8]
- Research article Microbial Rhodopsins: Diversity, Mechanisms, and Optogenetic Applications [9]
- Research article Memory engram storage and retrieval [10]
References
- Grimm C, Duss SN, Privitera M, Munn BR, Karalis N, Frässle S, et al.. Tonic and burst-like locus coeruleus stimulation distinctly shift network activity across the cortical hierarchy. . 2024. PMID 39284964 · DOI · PMC11537968
- Legnini I, Emmenegger L, Zappulo A, Rybak-Wolf A, Wurmus R, Martinez AO, et al.. Spatiotemporal, optogenetic control of gene expression in organoids. . 2023. PMID 37735569 · DOI · PMC10555836
- Lorenzo-Martín LF, Hübscher T, Bowler AD, Broguiere N, Langer J, Tillard L, et al.. Spatiotemporally resolved colorectal oncogenesis in mini-colons ex vivo. . 2024. PMID 38658753 · DOI · PMC11078756
- Alekseev A, Hunniford V, Zerche M, Jeschke M, El May F, Vavakou A, et al.. Efficient and sustained optogenetic control of sensory and cardiac systems. . 2026. PMID 40721511 · DOI · PMC12920086
- Deisseroth K. Optogenetics: 10 years of microbial opsins in neuroscience. Nat Neurosci. 2015. PMID 26308982 · DOI · PMC4790845
- Lerch MM, Hansen MJ, van Dam GM, Szymanski W, Feringa BL. Emerging Targets in Photopharmacology. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 2016. PMID 27376241 · DOI
- Luo L, Callaway EM, Svoboda K. Genetic Dissection of Neural Circuits: A Decade of Progress. Neuron. 2018. PMID 29673479 · DOI · PMC5912347
- Ankenbruck N, Courtney T, Naro Y, Deiters A. Optochemical Control of Biological Processes in Cells and Animals. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 2018. PMID 28521066 · DOI · PMC6026863
- Govorunova EG, Sineshchekov OA, Li H, Spudich JL. Microbial Rhodopsins: Diversity, Mechanisms, and Optogenetic Applications. Annu Rev Biochem. 2017. PMID 28301742 · DOI · PMC5747503
- Tonegawa S, Pignatelli M, Roy DS, Ryan TJ. Memory engram storage and retrieval. Curr Opin Neurobiol. 2015. PMID 26280931 · DOI
About this article
- Sources
- NLM Medical Subject Headings (definition, synonyms); NCBI PubMed (counts, identifiers); Europe PMC (open-access abstracts and citation counts).
- Verification
- Every reference was resolved against PubMed on 2026-10-31; title, year and DOI matched.
- Review state
- automated source verified; no human expert review has been recorded yet.
- Version
- 1, last updated 2026-10-29.
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Evidence strength
EvidenceHelix's computed view of the study designs behind this topic: how common meta-analyses, randomized trials and reviews are, how recent the literature is, and a plain-language reading. It describes the design mix of the literature. It is not a quality appraisal of any study, and it is not medical advice.