Nobel Prize 2026: How JNU scientist Suneel Kateriya helped lay the groundwork for optogenetics

A tiny freshwater alga and an Indian scientist's doctoral research in Germany are part of the scientific journey behind the 2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

In 2001, Suneel Kateriya was working in Professor Peter Hegemann's laboratory in Regensburg, Germany, when he searched the genes of Chlamydomonas, a single-celled alga that can detect and move towards light.

Kateriya identified two light-sensing proteins. The genes were later named channelrhodopsin-1 and channelrhodopsin-2.

Quick answers to key questions

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QUESTIONS

Optogenetics is a technique that allows researchers to control specific cells using light. It works by introducing light-sensitive proteins into neurons, enabling the use of light to alter the electrical activity of those neurons precisely.

Suneel Kateriya's research identified light-sensing proteins in the alga Chlamydomonas, which laid the groundwork for optogenetics, enabling precise control of neuron activity and opening new avenues for neuroscience research.

Advances in optogenetics have allowed scientists to study neural circuits more precisely, linking specific neurons to behavior, such as learned fear responses in animals, which enhances our understanding of brain functionality.

Optogenetics faces challenges like effective gene delivery, long-term safety, precise cell targeting, and the necessary light intensity for practical application in clinical settings.

Yes, researchers should consider optogenetics, given its potential for targeted control of cells in various neurological conditions, although it remains primarily a research tool at this stage.

More than two decades later, Kateriya is a professor at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), while his work forms part of the scientific foundation behind optogenetics — a technique that allows researchers to control selected cells, including neurons, using light.

The Nobel Assembly awarded the 2026 medicine prize to Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann and Georg Nagel for the discovery of light-gated ion channels and optogenetics.

Kateriya has described his contribution as part of a broader collaborative effort.

"Fundamental science and academic excellence are needed for bigger innovations," he told India Today Digital.

It started with an alga

The original research was not aimed at understanding the human brain.

"We had a fundamental question: how is this alga sensing light, and where are the genes?" Kateriya said. "We never thought it would be used for controlling the human brain."

The researchers found gene sequences encoding rhodopsin proteins and proposed that they could function as light-driven ion channels.

Experiments that followed showed that these proteins act as tiny molecular gates: light causes them to open, changing a cell's electrical activity. The first findings involving channelrhodopsin-1 appeared in Science in 2002, followed by research on channelrhodopsin-2 in PNAS in 2003.

How does the ‘light switch’ work?

Neurons communicate through electrical signals involving the movement of charged particles, or ions.

Channelrhodopsin combines a light sensor with an ion channel. When its gene is introduced into a neuron, light can effectively be used to switch that neuron on or influence its activity.

Professor Nishith Gupta of BITS Pilani's Hyderabad campus explained why that was significant.

"We could stimulate the brain long before optogenetics," he said. "What we lacked was the ability to choose a particular population of neurons and control its activity on the millisecond timescale at which the brain communicates."

Dr Santhosh Sethuramanujam of IIT Madras said older approaches could affect multiple cell types across a brain region, whereas optogenetics allows more targeted control.

"By simply shining light on brain tissue, scientists can switch targeted cells on or off with pinpoint, millisecond precision," he said.

From research tool to potential treatment

Optogenetics has since been used to study neural circuits and memory, including experiments in mice that linked specific neurons to learned fear responses.

The technology has also entered early-stage human research. In a 2021 trial, a patient with retinitis pigmentosa received a gene carrying a channelrhodopsin called ChrimsonR. Special goggles then projected light onto the retina.

With the goggles, the patient could perceive, locate, count and touch objects using the treated eye. Without them, the patient could not detect them.

It was a partial recovery in one patient, not restoration of normal sight.

"Blindness is furthest along because the retina is accessible both to gene delivery and to light," Gupta said.

What comes next?

Despite the promise, optogenetics remains largely a research technology. Scientists still face challenges involving gene delivery, long-term safety, cell-specific targeting and the intensity of light required.

"If I had to name the biggest barrier, it would be achieving safe, durable control of precisely the right cells in the human brain," Gupta said.

Indian laboratories are also using optogenetics to study vision, glioblastoma and genetic diseases.

For Kateriya, the journey has come full circle: from identifying light-sensitive genes in a microscopic alga as a PhD student to using related tools at JNU to study disease.

"Peter taught me hours and hours, as a PhD student," he said. "That is very important."

About the Author

Anjali Thakur is a Senior Assistant Editor with Mint, reporting on trending news, entertainment and health, with a focus on stories driving digital conversations. Her work involves spotting early signals across news cycles and social media, sharpening stories for SEO and Google Discover, and mentoring young editors in digital-first newsroom practices. She is known for turning fast-moving developments—whether news-driven or culture-led—into clear, tightly edited journalism without compromising editorial rigour.<br><br> Before joining Mint, she was Deputy News Editor at NDTV.com, where she led the Trending section and covered viral news, breaking developments and human-interest stories. She has also worked as Chief Sub-Editor at India.com (Zee Media) and as Senior Correspondent with Exchange4media and Hindustan Times’ HT City, reporting on media, advertising, entertainment, health, lifestyle and popular culture.<br><br> Anjali holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Miranda House, and is currently pursuing an MBA, strengthening her understanding of business strategy and digital media economics. Her writing balances newsroom discipline with a clear instinct for what resonates with readers.

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