Abstract:
Both photogenetics and chemical genetics are the techniques for artificially regulating the activity of neurons. They emerged at the beginning of
this century and the 1990s respectively. The main routes of the two technologies
are similar. It is through genetic that lead neurons in the target brain region
express photosensitive ion channel proteins or artificial receptor proteins. Then
the activity of recombinant channel protein was affected by external stimulation.
So as to change the generation and inhibition of neuronal action potential.
Finally, the changes of animal behavior were observed, and the relationship
between the changes of animal behavior and the activity of neurons in the brain
was discussed. In other words, the purpose of technology is to analyze the brain
mechanism of psychology or behavior. The use of this kind of technology often
depends on other biological tools, such as the recombinant adeno-associated
virus needed to make brain neurons express exogenous photosensitive ion
channel protein or artificial receptor protein, and the transgenic technology
related to Cre mice. In addition, photogenetics and chemical genetics are very
popular in behavioral neuroscience, but their applications are not limited
to this. They can also be used in many fields such as intracellular signal
transduction, disease research or drug design. Although there are still some
shortcomings in this technology, there are also advantages cannot be covered
up. It has considerable potential in the research of behavioral neuroscience and
the treatment of neurological and mental diseases in the future.
光遗传学和化学遗传学均为人工调节神经元活性的相关技术,分别兴起于本世纪初和20 世纪90 年代。这两项技术的主要路线相似,通过遗传学手段使目标脑区的神经元表达出光敏离子通道蛋白或者人工受体蛋白,再利用外加刺激影响重组通道蛋白的活性,从而改变神经元动作电位的产生与抑制,最后观察动物行为的变化,讨论动物行为的变化和脑区神经元活性的关系,换言之,技术目的为分析心理或行为的脑内机制。该类技术的使用往往还需要依靠其他生物学工具,如使脑内神经元表达出外源光敏离子通道蛋白或者人工受体蛋白所需的重组腺相关病毒,以及Cre 鼠相关的转基因技术等。此外,光遗传学和化学遗传学在行为神经科学中备受青睐,但应用范围不仅仅局限于此,它们还可以应用于胞内信号转到、疾病研究或者药物设计学等多个领域。虽然该技术仍存在些许不足,但总体瑕不掩瑜,未来在行为神经科学研究和神经及精神领域疾病的治疗中具有可观的潜力。