Module 7A: Selecting Appropriate Stimulus Parameters for Optogenetic Manipulations

In this presentation, faculty cover some of the key technical issues that arise when designing and interpreting optogenetic experiments. Specifically, Chris Chen and Scott Owen will:

• Describe how to select optimal tools and stimulation parameters for an optogenetics experiment.
• Identify potential confounds related to stimulus parameters.
• Describe key methods to validate optogenetic tools.

After watching this presentation, you should be able to better understand how to select optimal tools and stimulation parameters for an optogenetics experiment.

Ask Module 7 Faculty Your Questions

SfN members have the opportunity to submit questions from August 1 – August 16 to Chris Chen, Scott Owen, Julia Lemos, and Shana Augustin in a Neuronline Community discussion thread. They will answer your questions live on Thursday, August 16, from 1–2 p.m. EDT, so make sure to visit the Neuronline Community forum then.

Visit the Community forum for all eight modules to share your insights and best practices, ask questions, and engage with other training series’ participants.

Speakers

Christopher Chen, PhD

Christopher Chen is a postdoctoral fellow in the department of neurobiology at Harvard Medical School. His research focuses on identifying and describing novel outputs of the cerebellum. Chen earned his PhD at Albert Einstein College of Medicine.

Scott Owen, PhD

Scott Owen is a staff scientist and completing his postdoctoral training at the Gladstone Institute of Neurological Disease at the University of California, San Francisco. His research focuses on how local microcircuits facilitate the storage and processing of information and how defects in inhibitory microcircuits can underlie neurological and psychiatric disease. Owen earned his PhD in molecular and cellular physiology from Stanford University.