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Abstract
To understand how brain states and behaviors are generated by neural circuits, it
would be useful to be able to perturb precisely the activity of specific cell types
and pathways in the nonhuman primate nervous system. We used lentivirus to target
the light-activated cation channel channelrhodopsin-2 (ChR2) specifically to excitatory
neurons of the macaque frontal cortex. Using a laser-coupled optical fiber in conjunction
with a recording microelectrode, we showed that activation of excitatory neurons resulted
in well-timed excitatory and suppressive influences on neocortical neural networks.
ChR2 was safely expressed, and could mediate optical neuromodulation, in primate neocortex
over many months. These findings highlight a methodology for investigating the causal
role of specific cell types in nonhuman primate neural computation, cognition, and
behavior, and open up the possibility of a new generation of ultraprecise neurological
and psychiatric therapeutics via cell-type-specific optical neural control prosthetics.