Properties of Channelrhodopsin variants tested in this study in C. elegans body wall muscle cells.

Summary of the results obtained with ChR::YFP fusion proteins expressed in body wall muscle (BWM) cells. Expression obtained from extrachromosomal transgenes were compared by eye, for expression level, localization to the plasma membrane and mosaic expression patterns, and classified from – (no expression) to +++ (robust, uniform and predominantly plasma membrane expression). Photo evoked contractions were deduced from work presented in the main and supplementary figures, given as relative body contraction in % of the initial length, measured at the indicated wavelength near the respective action spectrum maximum. The number of generated transgenic lines is given, as well as lines with appreciable expression, tested for light evoked reactions, and number of lines responding as by visual inspection. Each time, the best-responding line was further analyzed for quantitative data as presented throughout. ‘Rating’: A non-quantitative, arbitrary summary of the parameters tested for each protein, and from impressions obtained while experimenting with each; ranked from +++ (very well-working optogenetic tool, in C. elegans) to - (non-working optogenetic tool, in C. elegans).