ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the utilization of optogenetics as a means of achieving high spatiotemporal control of neuronal activity in the retina for vision restoration. Neurophotonic vision restoration and optogenetics are strongly coupled: this was the first medical application recognized and pursued in the context of optogenetics, and it has apparently motivated some of the earliest experiments examining the use of the algal opsin Channelrhodopsin-2 as an optogenetic probe. A number of studies have demonstrated the potential of optogenetics as a powerful tool for engineering natural neuronal responses in retinal ganglion cells. The most common method for transducing retinal cells with genes encoding for optogenetic proteins is by injecting Adeno-Associated Viruses into the subretinal or intravitreal space. An optical retinal prosthesis should be able to drive cellular activity of multiple neurons simultaneously with a high spatio-temporal resolution. The suggested methods for low-light vision restoration rely on genetic modification of bipolar cells.
