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Scientists Used Light to Turn Brain Cells On and Off! 🔦

Three researchers won the Nobel Medicine Prize for discovering how to control brain cells with light.

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Key Points

3 points

Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann, and Georg Nagel won the 2026 Nobel Medicine Prize.

They discovered light‑gated ion channels that control nerve cells.

The method is now used in laboratories worldwide to study brain function.

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Their technique, called optogenetics, lets scientists switch nerve cells on or off in living brains.

This new tool helps scientists explore the mysteries of the brain around the world.

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7 words

physiology

how living bodies work

optogenetics

a method that uses light to control brain cells

ion channels

tiny gates in cells that let charged particles pass

Nobel Prize

a famous award for important discoveries

Karolinska Institute

a Swedish medical university that helps pick winners

light‑gated

controlled by light

nerve cells

cells that send signals in the brain

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