Stroke is a leading cause of disability and has very limited treatment options. “Brain stimulation techniques that promote recovery after stroke are a promising area of research; however, current stimulation techniques nonspecifically activate/inhibit the target area, which not only leads to undesired side effects but also makes it difficult to understand which cell types and mechanisms drive recovery.” Cheng and colleagues “used the optogenetic technique to specifically stimulate only neurons after stroke and demonstrate that selective neuronal stimulations can activate beneficial mechanisms and promote recovery. Understanding the cell type and mechanisms driving recovery may identify potential drug targets for stroke treatment, as well as ultimately help develop precise brain stimulation techniques for stroke therapy.”
.
Cheng MY, Wang EH, Woodson WJ, Wang S, Sun G, Lee AG, Arac A, Fenno LE, Deisseroth K, Steinberg GK: Optogenetic neuronal stimulation promotes functional recovery after stroke. PNAS [Epub ahead of print August 18, 2014; doi: 10.1073/pnas.1404109111 ].
.
http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2014/08/14/1404109111.abstract