Optogenetics: Circuits, Genes and Photons in Biological Systems, covers the very latest research and understanding of information processing in the brain. New research has revealed ways to exploit the natural mechanisms by which neurons communicate, and to convert these mechanisms into experimental tools for observing and controlling activity in the brain. At the core of these approaches lie sensor proteins that report changes in the physiological states of neurons or synapses optically i.e., responding too light and actuator proteins that effect such changes in response to exogenous triggers. Encoded in DNA and placed under the control of suitable promoter sequences determining their expression, sensor and actuator proteins can be localized precisely and non-invasively to defined classes of neurons in the intact, living brain. Light-emittingsensors of neuronal activity have begun to reveal how information is represented in neuronal circuits, and how these representations are transformed duringthe computations that inform behavior. This book is decidedly not a methodscookbook but rather a rigorous conceptual foundation for the field. The editor has ensured that all contributions have focused on ideas rather than technicalities; authors adopted a forward-looking perspective rather than simply offering reviews of the status quo. Focusing predominantly on conceptual rather than practical issues has allowed this seminal book to establish its value as the founding document in the field, despite continuing technical innovation.
- ISBN: 978-0-470-18961-0
- Editorial: John Wiley & Sons
- Encuadernacion: Cartoné
- Páginas: 400
- Fecha Publicación: 18/07/2011
- Nº Volúmenes: 1
- Idioma: Inglés