Selective optogenetic stimulation of efferent fibers in the vagus nerve of a large mammal
Lindsea C. Booth, Song T. Yao, Alla Korsak, David Farmer, Sally G. Hood, Daniel McCormick, Quinn Boesley, Angela A. Connelly, Stuart J. McDougall, Willian S. Korim, Sarah‐Jane Guild, Svetlana Mastitskaya, Phuong T. Le, Anja G. Teschemacher, Sergey Kasparov, Gareth L. Ackland, Simon C. Malpas, Robin M. McAllen, Andrew M. Allen, Clive N. May, Alexander V. Gourine
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Electrical stimulation applied to individual organs, peripheral nerves, or specific brain regions has been used to treat a range of medical conditions. In cardiovascular disease, autonomic dysfunction contributes to the disease progression and electrical stimulation of the vagus nerve has been pursued as a treatment for the purpose of restoring the autonomic balance. However, this approach lacks selectivity in activating function- and organ-specific vagal fibers and, despite promising results of many preclinical studies, has so far failed to translate into a clinical treatment of cardiovascular disease. OBJECTIVE: Here we report a successful application of optogenetics for selective stimulation of vagal efferent activity in a large animal model (sheep). METHODS AND RESULTS: . CONCLUSIONS: These findings demonstrate that in species with a large, multi-fascicled vagus nerve, it is possible to stimulate a specific sub-population of efferent fibers using light at a site remote from the vector delivery, marking an important step towards eventual clinical use of optogenetic technology for autonomic neuromodulation.