{"id":21970,"date":"2020-02-20T15:12:35","date_gmt":"2020-02-20T15:12:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/clemson.world\/research\/?p=21970"},"modified":"2020-02-21T16:45:50","modified_gmt":"2020-02-21T16:45:50","slug":"lighting-a-new-way","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/research\/lighting-a-new-way\/","title":{"rendered":"Lighting a New Way to Study Brain Function"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id='fullscreen_slider_1'  class='avia-fullscreen-slider main_color   avia-builder-el-0  el_before_av_image  avia-builder-el-first   container_wrap sidebar_right' style=' '  ><a href='#next-section' title='' class='scroll-down-link av-control-minimal' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue877' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello'><\/a><div   data-size='no scaling'  data-lightbox_size='large'  data-animation='slide'  data-conditional_play=''  data-ids='21971'  data-video_counter='0'  data-autoplay='true'  data-bg_slider='true'  data-slide_height='100'  data-handle='av_fullscreen'  data-interval='5'  data-class=' '  data-el_id=''  data-css_id='fullscreen_slider_1'  data-scroll_down='aviaTBscroll_down'  data-control_layout='av-control-minimal'  data-custom_markup=''  data-perma_caption=''  data-autoplay_stopper=''  data-image_attachment='scroll'  data-min_height='0px'  data-stretch=''  class='avia-slideshow avia-slideshow-1 av-slider-scroll-down-active av-control-minimal av-default-height-applied avia-slideshow-no scaling av_fullscreen   avia-slide-slider '  itemprop=\"image\" itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\" ><ul class='avia-slideshow-inner ' style='padding-bottom: 66.6666666667%;' ><li style='background-position:top center;' data-img-url='https:\/\/clemson.world\/research\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/02\/Brain_Intro.jpg' class=' av-single-slide slide-1 ' ><div data-rel='slideshow-1' class='avia-slide-wrap '   ><\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><div id='after_full_slider_1'  class='main_color av_default_container_wrap container_wrap sidebar_right' style=' '  ><div class='container' ><div class='template-page content  av-content-small alpha units'><div class='post-entry post-entry-type-page post-entry-21970'><div class='entry-content-wrapper clearfix'>\n<div  class='avia-image-container  av-styling-    avia-builder-el-1  el_after_av_fullscreen  el_before_av_hr  avia-builder-el-first  avia-align-center '  itemprop=\"image\" itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\"  ><div class='avia-image-container-inner'><div class='avia-image-overlay-wrap'><img class='avia_image' src='https:\/\/clemson.world\/research\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/02\/Brain_Headline.png' alt='' title='Brain_Headline' height=\"450\" width=\"1100\"  itemprop=\"thumbnailUrl\"  \/><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<div  style='height:25px' class='hr hr-invisible   avia-builder-el-2  el_after_av_image  el_before_av_one_fifth '><span class='hr-inner ' ><span class='hr-inner-style'><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding first  avia-builder-el-3  el_after_av_hr  el_before_av_three_fifth  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_three_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding   avia-builder-el-4  el_after_av_one_fifth  el_before_av_one_fifth  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><div   class='hr hr-default   avia-builder-el-5  avia-builder-el-no-sibling '><span class='hr-inner ' ><span class='hr-inner-style'><\/span><\/span><\/div><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding   avia-builder-el-6  el_after_av_three_fifth  el_before_av_one_full  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_full  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding first  avia-builder-el-7  el_after_av_one_fifth  el_before_av_one_fifth  column-top-margin\" style='border-radius:0px; '><section class=\"av_textblock_section \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock  av_inherit_color '  style='font-size:13px; color:#000000; '  itemprop=\"text\" ><p style=\"text-align: center;\">By <b>Jill Sakai<\/b><br \/>\nPhotography by <b>Craig Mahaffey \u201998<\/b> &amp; <b>Ashley Jones<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding first  avia-builder-el-9  el_after_av_one_full  el_before_av_three_fifth  column-top-margin\" style='border-radius:0px; '><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_three_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding   avia-builder-el-10  el_after_av_one_fifth  el_before_av_one_fifth  column-top-margin\" style='border-radius:0px; '><div   class='hr hr-default   avia-builder-el-11  avia-builder-el-no-sibling '><span class='hr-inner ' ><span class='hr-inner-style'><\/span><\/span><\/div><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding   avia-builder-el-12  el_after_av_three_fifth  el_before_av_one_full  column-top-margin\" style='border-radius:0px; '><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_full  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding first  avia-builder-el-13  el_after_av_one_fifth  el_before_av_one_full  column-top-margin\" style='border-radius:0px; '><section class=\"av_textblock_section \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock  av_inherit_color '  style='font-size:29px; color:#000000; '  itemprop=\"text\" ><p style=\"text-align: center; line-height: 1.4em;\"><strong>Stephen Foulger is harnessing new X-ray-sensitive, light-emitting materials, which may enable control of neural activity from outside the skull<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_full  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding first  avia-builder-el-15  el_after_av_one_full  el_before_av_fullscreen  avia-builder-el-last  column-top-margin\" style='border-radius:0px; '><section class=\"av_textblock_section \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock  av_inherit_color '  style='font-size:17px; color:#000000; '  itemprop=\"text\" ><p class=\"p1\">Before joining Clemson&#8217;s faculty in 1999, Stephen Foulger spent a stint working in the fiber optics industry. Years later, that background drew his interest to a developing field that uses implanted fibers to deliver light signals deep within the brain to trigger neural activity.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">Called optogenetics<\/span>, the experimental technique offers a way to change activity in targeted regions of the brain from outside the skull, using pulses of light delivered to light-sensitive proteins in the neurons. Researchers have tested the approach in animal models to try to restore activity in regions affected by neurodegenerative disease, for example, or to damp down errant neural firing in epilepsy. Foulger, the Gregg-Graniteville Endowed Chair and Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, marveled at the technique\u2019s potential for exploring brain function or treating disease.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s2\">\u201cThese light-sensitive proteins open or close synapses,\u201d he explains. \u201cYou can localize synaptic behavior in regions of the brain using these light-tunneling fibers and these proteins.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s2\">But the need to implant the optical fibers directly into the brain is a major limitation of the technique\u2019s broader use. Researchers must remove a small piece of skull and leave the fibers in place for the duration of an experiment. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p3\"><span class=\"s2\">With his expertise in designing optical materials, Foulger realized it should be possible to accomplish the task without fibers. He is now working to harness the potential of optogenetics for wider use by designing new light-producing materials that could make the approach noninvasive and bring it within reach for medical applications. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><!-- close content main div --><\/div><\/div><div id='fullscreen_slider_2'  class='avia-fullscreen-slider main_color   avia-builder-el-17  el_after_av_one_full  el_before_av_one_full   slider-not-first container_wrap sidebar_right' style=' '  ><a href='#next-section' title='' class='scroll-down-link av-control-minimal' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue877' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello'><\/a><div   data-size='no scaling'  data-lightbox_size='large'  data-animation='slide'  data-conditional_play=''  data-ids='21973'  data-video_counter='0'  data-autoplay='true'  data-bg_slider='true'  data-slide_height='100'  data-handle='av_fullscreen'  data-interval='5'  data-class=' '  data-el_id=''  data-css_id='fullscreen_slider_2'  data-scroll_down='aviaTBscroll_down'  data-control_layout='av-control-minimal'  data-custom_markup=''  data-perma_caption=''  data-autoplay_stopper=''  data-image_attachment='scroll'  data-min_height='0px'  data-stretch=''  class='avia-slideshow avia-slideshow-2 av-slider-scroll-down-active av-control-minimal av-default-height-applied avia-slideshow-no scaling av_fullscreen   avia-slide-slider '  itemprop=\"image\" itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\" ><ul class='avia-slideshow-inner ' style='padding-bottom: 66.6666666667%;' ><li style='background-position:top center;' data-img-url='https:\/\/clemson.world\/research\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/02\/Brain_Foulger-Lab.jpg' class=' av-single-slide slide-1 ' ><div data-rel='slideshow-2' class='avia-slide-wrap '   ><\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><div id='after_full_slider_2'  class='main_color av_default_container_wrap container_wrap sidebar_right' style=' '  ><div class='container' ><div class='template-page content  av-content-small alpha units'><div class='post-entry post-entry-type-page post-entry-21970'><div class='entry-content-wrapper clearfix'>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_full  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding first  avia-builder-el-18  el_after_av_fullscreen  el_before_av_one_full  avia-builder-el-first  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><section class=\"av_textblock_section \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock  av_inherit_color '  style='font-size:17px; color:#000000; '  itemprop=\"text\" ><p><b>PARTICLE MAN<\/b><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">To accomplish his goal<\/span><span class=\"s2\">, Foulger is creating a completely new kind of bioimaging material.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s2\">\u201cWe\u2019re trying to replace some of the fiber optic cabling that goes into the brain for optogenetics,\u201d Foulger explains. \u201cInstead of using fibers that go into the brain, we want to use radioluminescent particles and X-ray sources to generate light in these localized positions.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">The idea, he says, is to create tiny particles coated with light-producing materials that could then be injected via a shot and directed to infiltrate a targeted spot in the brain. When hit with a focused X-ray, the coating would emit light at a characteristic wavelength and activate nearby light-sensitive proteins, which change shape to drive neuronal firing.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s2\">Foulger and two collaborators, neuroscientists Lori McMahon at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and Jason Weick at the University of New Mexico, won a $6 million grant from the National Science Foundation to tackle this challenge. It\u2019s a highly collaborative project designed to cross disciplines. Weick, a molecular biologist, is developing a method to get the light-sensitive proteins, called opsins, into brain cells. McMahon, a neurophysiologist, is exploring how to use X-ray-triggered particles to control brain circuits. And Foulger, as the materials scientist and director of Clemson\u2019s Center for Optical Materials Science and Engineering, is responsible for creating the requisite particles. The NSF project naturally falls within COMSET\u2019s scope of research on materials that generate, convey or manipulate light. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s2\">Ideally, the particles should be no more than 100 nanometers in diameter \u2014 roughly one-seventieth the width of a human hair \u2014 to pass through blood vessels and collect in the brain without causing damage. They need to work effectively in living tissue. And they must produce enough light to trigger the opsins, with as little X-ray exposure as possible.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s2\">\u201cIt\u2019s a challenge,\u201d Foulger says. \u201cMaking a sub-100-nanometer radioluminescent particle hasn\u2019t been done. So, it\u2019s a basic materials science problem.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s2\">In the first years of the project, his group has successfully developed submicrometer ceramic particles doped with the rare earth element cerium and coated with light-emitting molecules called fluorophores. They are now testing materials with different emission wavelengths and characteristics \u2014 how much light the molecules produce and how well they pair with the sometimes-finicky\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"s1\">absorption characteristics of the light-sensitive proteins called opsins. It can be a bit of a moving target, as opsin development is itself a complex, developing field. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">\u201cThere are many kinds of these proteins, and they have different responses to light,\u201d says McMahon. \u201cWe have to do a lot of testing to find out which light-sensitive protein and which of the particles that Dr. Foulger\u2019s lab has made are the best ones to pair together.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_full  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding first  avia-builder-el-20  el_after_av_one_full  el_before_av_one_full  column-top-margin\" style='border-radius:0px; '><section class=\"av_textblock_section \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock  av_inherit_color '  style='font-size:29px; color:#000000; '  itemprop=\"text\" ><p style=\"text-align: center; line-height: 1.4em;\"><strong>Foulger is now working to harness the potential of optogenetics for wider use by designing new light-producing materials that could make the approach noninvasive and bring it within reach for medical applications.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div><div class=\"flex_column av_one_full  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding first  avia-builder-el-22  el_after_av_one_full  el_before_av_fullscreen  avia-builder-el-last  column-top-margin\" style='border-radius:0px; '><section class=\"av_textblock_section \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock  av_inherit_color '  style='font-size:17px; color:#000000; '  itemprop=\"text\" ><p><strong>BRIDGING WORLDS<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">Although X-ray-sensitive particles<\/span><span class=\"s2\"> exist for many industrial applications, developing <\/span>radioluminescent materials compatible with living systems comes with a different set of challenges. Biological environments are wet, messy and unpredictable. Materials may behave differently in cells than in a chemistry lab, and differently in a whole animal than in a pile of cells. Or their function may change with long-term versus short-term use.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">Creating something for use in a living body adds many extra constraints that the materials science world doesn\u2019t always face.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">\u201cYou don\u2019t have a complete open palette of materials you\u2019d like to use because of toxicity,\u201d Foulger says. \u201cA lot of the stuff that\u2019s out there that\u2019s radioluminescent is going to poison you, so we have a pretty tight constraint on what we can develop and put into a biological system. When we do simple toxicity tests with something new and we find that the cells don\u2019t seem to respond negatively to it \u2014 to us, that can be a great day because it means we can keep going with the chemistry.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">For these considerations, Foulger has worked closely with McMahon and Weick. They quickly discovered that bridging disciplines also requires a bit of translation. \u201cInitially, their definition of nontoxic and our definition of nontoxic were really different,\u201d McMahon says, describing the need to keep neural cells not just alive but also healthy and unstressed. \u201cIt\u2019s taken us some time to learn each other\u2019s languages because our worlds are very different.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">With their combined expertise, they\u2019ve progressed to early functional studies of the radioluminescent particles in rat brain slices \u2014 sections cut from a whole brain to retain some of the circuitry and function but in a preparation that can be studied in a lab dish.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">The preliminary data are promising, McMahon says. The team has confirmed that neither the particles themselves nor X-rays at the needed dose hurt neural function. Now, she says, \u201cwe\u2019re putting the particles from Dr. Foulger\u2019s group on our brain slice, using X-rays and attempting to control circuits.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">For McMahon, it\u2019s exciting to finally start seeing the nanomaterials and the physiology work together: \u201cThis is a project that we as neuroscientists would never do on our own, without Steve Foulger\u2019s expertise. And he would never do this without our expertise.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><!-- close content main div --><\/div><\/div><div id='fullscreen_slider_3'  class='avia-fullscreen-slider main_color   avia-builder-el-24  el_after_av_one_full  el_before_av_one_full   slider-not-first container_wrap sidebar_right' style=' '  ><a href='#next-section' title='' class='scroll-down-link av-control-minimal' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue877' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello'><\/a><div   data-size='no scaling'  data-lightbox_size='large'  data-animation='slide'  data-conditional_play=''  data-ids='21974'  data-video_counter='0'  data-autoplay='true'  data-bg_slider='true'  data-slide_height='100'  data-handle='av_fullscreen'  data-interval='5'  data-class=' '  data-el_id=''  data-css_id='fullscreen_slider_3'  data-scroll_down='aviaTBscroll_down'  data-control_layout='av-control-minimal'  data-custom_markup=''  data-perma_caption=''  data-autoplay_stopper=''  data-image_attachment='scroll'  data-min_height='0px'  data-stretch=''  class='avia-slideshow avia-slideshow-3 av-slider-scroll-down-active av-control-minimal av-default-height-applied avia-slideshow-no scaling av_fullscreen   avia-slide-slider '  itemprop=\"image\" itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\" ><ul class='avia-slideshow-inner ' style='padding-bottom: 66.6666666667%;' ><li style='background-position:top center;' data-img-url='https:\/\/clemson.world\/research\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/02\/Brain_Substance.jpg' class=' av-single-slide slide-1 ' ><div data-rel='slideshow-3' class='avia-slide-wrap '   ><\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><div id='after_full_slider_3'  class='main_color av_default_container_wrap container_wrap sidebar_right' style=' '  ><div class='container' ><div class='template-page content  av-content-small alpha units'><div class='post-entry post-entry-type-page post-entry-21970'><div class='entry-content-wrapper clearfix'>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_full  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding first  avia-builder-el-25  el_after_av_fullscreen  el_before_av_hr  avia-builder-el-first  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><section class=\"av_textblock_section \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock  av_inherit_color '  style='font-size:17px; color:#000000; '  itemprop=\"text\" ><p><b>ONE STEP AT A TIME<\/b><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">T<\/span><span class=\"s2\">he successes are encouraging <\/span><span class=\"s3\">but early steps <\/span>on a long path, Foulger says. His group is continuing to refine the nanoparticles, adding different proteins to tune and enhance the light output. He\u2019s also testing ways to help visualize the particles once in the brain since they\u2019re too small to see with a light microscope.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">At the same time, the Alabama researchers are working on how to get Foulger\u2019s nanoparticles into an intact brain rather than slices. The brain is normally walled off from the rest of the body with the blood-brain barrier, a protective layer in blood vessels that keeps out immune cells, toxins and other potential threats. That means getting anything through \u2014 such as tiny manufactured particles \u2014 poses a significant challenge. McMahon\u2019s group is working with focused ultrasound to transmit the particles through the vessel walls into the desired brain region.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">Ultimately, the researchers hope to be able to inject the particles into the bloodstream, allow them to circulate to the brain\u2019s blood vessels, then use focused ultrasound to open up the blood-brain barrier in a region called the hippocampus.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">\u201cWe\u2019re very interested in the hippocampus because that\u2019s a part of the brain that\u2019s required for learning and memory,\u201d says McMahon. \u201cThe idea is to activate the particles to either turn on circuits to enhance learning or to use a different light-sensitive protein that would turn off circuits and prevent learning.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">This potential power of optogenetics to change behavior is part of what drew Foulger to the technique early on. While visiting a lab, \u201cI saw rats that were addicted to cocaine or an opiate or something. They could hit a lever to get a dosage of the drug. And they would continue to do it until they basically had heart failure,\u201d he recalls. \u201c[The rats] had a fiber going to the brain in this certain region. \u2026 The animal\u2019s hitting the lever, and the second [the researchers] fired up the laser and the light went in, \u2026 it shut down that addiction zone in the brain. The animal just stopped. It was mind-blowing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">Foulger hopes that someday his work could lead to a technique that could reset brain circuits to help people unlearn unwanted patterns such as substance abuse or trauma or regain function in damaged pathways.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">\u201cThat\u2019s way down the road,\u201d he says. \u201cBut it\u2019s why we\u2019re moving down this path.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n<div  style='height:50px' class='hr hr-invisible   avia-builder-el-27  el_after_av_one_full  el_before_av_one_fifth '><span class='hr-inner ' ><span class='hr-inner-style'><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding first  avia-builder-el-28  el_after_av_hr  el_before_av_three_fifth  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_three_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding   avia-builder-el-29  el_after_av_one_fifth  el_before_av_one_fifth  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><div   class='hr hr-big   avia-builder-el-30  avia-builder-el-no-sibling '><span class='hr-inner ' ><span class='hr-inner-style'><\/span><\/span><\/div><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding   avia-builder-el-31  el_after_av_three_fifth  el_before_av_one_fifth  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding first  avia-builder-el-32  el_after_av_one_fifth  el_before_av_three_fifth  column-top-margin\" style='border-radius:0px; '><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_three_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding   avia-builder-el-33  el_after_av_one_fifth  el_before_av_one_fifth  column-top-margin\" style='border-radius:0px; '><section class=\"av_textblock_section \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock  av_inherit_color '  style='font-size:13px; color:#000000; '  itemprop=\"text\" ><p><b>Jill Sakai<\/b> is a freelance writer in Wisconsin.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding   avia-builder-el-35  el_after_av_three_fifth  el_before_av_hr  column-top-margin\" style='border-radius:0px; '><\/div>\n<div  style='height:100px' class='hr hr-invisible   avia-builder-el-36  el_after_av_one_fifth  el_before_av_comments_list '><span class='hr-inner ' ><span class='hr-inner-style'><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<div  class='av-buildercomment   '><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Stephen Foulger is harnessing new X-ray-sensitive, light-emitting materials, which may enable control of neural activity from outside the skull.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":21971,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[9],"tags":[221,227,225,228,226],"coauthors":[156],"class_list":["post-21970","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","tag-2020-features","tag-bioimaging","tag-brain-research","tag-nanoparticles","tag-optogenetics"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/research\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/02\/Brain_Intro.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9IEky-5Im","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/research\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21970","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/research\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/research\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/research\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/research\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21970"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/research\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21970\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/research\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21971"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/research\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21970"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/research\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21970"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/research\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21970"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/research\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=21970"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}