Novel high current Channelrhodopsins
Improved Channelrhodopsins for future Optogenetic Therapies
By structure guided rational mutagenesis a superior Channelrhodopsin variant (ChReef) was developed from the Protein ChRmine. A desensitization effect could be reduced by a factor of three and at the same time the light induced photo-current of these variants is five times higher. This allows for an activation of neurons with lower light doses and/or a reduced expression level, which will reduce side effects.
