To confirm our viral injections yielded equal viral infection rates across animals that received the empty viral vector (AAV5‐hSyn‐mCherry), the viral vector containing the stimulating opsin, channelrhodopsin2 (ChR2) (AAV5‐hSyn‐ChR2(H134R)‐mCherry), or the inhibitory opsin, halorhodopsin (eNpHR) (AAV5‐hSyn‐eNpHR3.0‐mCherry). Here, RIC8B is linked to viral infectious disease.