Thermooptogenetic technologies for nerve system stimulation coupled with in vivo molecular imaging

The project is aimed on development of new optical technologies for nerve systems stimulation based on infrared light sensitive ion channels. In contrast to optogenetics (OG), these technologies, named "thermooptogenetics" (TOG) will enable stimulation of not only surface cortex layers, but also deep brain regions, noninvasively. This will be made possible by high transparency of the brain and other tissues to IR light compared to visible light used for OG stimulation. TOG technologies will bring reduced phototoxicity to the brain due to less photodynamic damage caused by IR light compared to visible light. TOG technologies will be better compatible with optical methods of neuronal activity detection as the stimulus and detection light will occupy different and distant areas of the spectrum: IR and visible, respectively. We shall develop and optimize methods of neuronal activity detection upon TOG stimulation.

January 6, 2014 — December 31, 2016

Belousov V.V. (PI)

Department of metabolism and redox biology, Laboratory of molecular technologies

Grant, RSF

List of publications

  1. Erapaneedi R, Belousov VV, Schäfers M, Kiefer F (2016). A novel family of fluorescent hypoxia sensors reveal strong heterogeneity in tumor hypoxia at the cellular level. EMBO J 35 (1), 102–113
  2. Santos CXC, Hafstad AD, Beretta M, Zhang M, Molenaar C, Kopec J, Fotinou D, Murray TV, Cobb AM, Martin D, Zeh Silva M, Anilkumar N, Schröder K, Shanahan CM, Brewer AC, Brandes RP, Blanc E, Parsons M, Belousov V, Cammack R, Hider RC, Steiner RA, Shah AM (2016). Targeted redox inhibition of protein phosphatase 1 by Nox4 regulates eIF2α-mediated stress signaling. EMBO J 35 (3), 319–334
  3. Bilan DS, Belousov VV (2016). HyPer Family Probes: State of the Art. Antioxid Redox Signal 24 (13), 731–751
  4. Safronov NA, Fedotov IV, Ermakova YG, Matlashov ME, Sidorov-Biryukov DA, Fedotov AB, Belousov VV, Zheltikov AM (2015). Microwave-induced thermogenetic activation of single cells. Appl Phys Lett 106 (16),