Berlin to BITS Pilani: How Nobel-winning Optogenetics connects to parasite research in Hyderabad

The 2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, awarded to Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann, and Georg Nagel “for their discoveries concerning light-gated ion channels and optogenetics”, has brought renewed attention to using light to investigate fundamental biological processes. These include memory formation, feelings, and behaviours relevant for neurological and psychiatric disorders, as well as processes involved in infectious disease.

Editorial | Let there be light: On the 2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology/Medicine

For Nishith Gupta, professor of Biological Sciences at BITS Pilani, Hyderabad, and founder of the Intracellular Parasite Education and Research Labs (iPEARL), the recognition has a personal significance in his own scientific journey.

Mr. Gupta’s decades-long collaboration with Hegemann at Humboldt University of Berlin, where Hegemanna is Hertie Senior Professor of Neuroscience, helped extend optogenetic approaches beyond neuroscience into his study of Toxoplasma gondii, an intracellular parasite that infects humans, mammals, and birds.

Interactive Guide | Nobel Prize 2026

Professor of Biological Sciences at BITS Pilani-Hyderabad Campus, Nishith Gupta with Peter Hegemann, 2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine laureate.

Optogenetics enables scientists to control selected cells or biological processes using light-sensitive proteins.