Synergistic combination of near-infrared irradiation and targeted gold nanoheaters for enhanced photothermal neural stimulation.

Despite a potential of infrared neural stimulation (INS) for modulating neural activities, INS suffers from limited light confinement and bulk tissue heating. Here, a novel methodology for an advanced optical stimulation is proposed by combining near-infrared (NIR) stimulation with gold nanorods (GNRs) targeted to neuronal cell membrane. We confirmed experimentally that in vitro and in vivo neural activation is associated with a local heat generation based on NIR stimulation and GNRs. Compared with the case of NIR stimulation without an aid of GNRs, combination with cell-targeted GNRs allows photothermal stimulation with faster neural response, lower delivered energy, higher stimulation efficiency and stronger behavior change. Since the suggested method can reduce a requisite radiant exposure level and alleviate a concern of tissue damage, it is expected to open up new possibilities for applications to optical neuromodulations for diverse excitable tissues and treatments of neurological disorders.