The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2026 has been awarded for optogenetics — a method that makes it possible to show how nerve cells shape memories, feelings and behaviours in the living brain. Optogenetics is being used by researchers in an attempt to restore sight in people with visual impairment.
The prize was awarded jointly to Professors Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann, and Georg Nagel “for their discoveries concerning light-gated ion channels and optogenetics”.1
Professors Hegemann and Nagel discovered the protein, channelrhodopsin, in a single-celled alga. Professor Deisseroth transformed the protein into a light-controlled switch for nerve cells.
In the announcement the Laureates were described as having “laid the foundation of a new era in neuroscience”.
“Optogenetics provides opportunities for mapping the brain in a way that we could once only dream of,” said Professor Per Svenningsson, Chair of the Nobel Committee for Physiology or Medicine.
In clinical medicine, researchers are using the method in attempts to restore sight in people with visual impairment
Professors Hegemann and Nagel discovered channelrhodopsin back in the early 2000s, and observed unique properties on the surface of the cell. When illuminated by blue light, a channel opened through the protein. Charged ions would then flow into the cell, creating an electrical impulse. They found that regardless of which cell they put the protein in, those cells became light sensitive.
Prof Deisseroth introduced the gene for channel-rhodopsin into nerve cells from rats. By illuminating the cells with blue light, he was able to trigger a nerve signal. He published this breakthrough in 2005. Two years later, he made this light-controlled switch for nerve cells work in the brains of living mice.
This method for controlling nerve signals with light is now called optogenetics, and it has rapidly gained global impact. Using optogenetics, researchers have been able to reveal neural circuits governing specific memories, feelings, and behaviours relevant for neurological and psychiatric disorders. In clinical medicine, researchers are using the method in attempts to restore sight in people with visual impairment.
Optogenetics has fundamentally altered our understanding of the brain. Every day brings new discoveries, helping to solve one of humanity’s great mysteries: how our incredible brain works.
Reference
- The Nobel Prize Light-seeking algae gave us a switch for nerve cells. Available at nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/2026/press-release [accessed Oct 2026].
