Light now in sight: Control of a 'blind' neuroreceptor with an optical switch
Tuesday, January 10, 2012 - 11:01
in Physics & Chemistry
When nerve cells communicate with one another, specialized receptor molecules on their surfaces play a central role in relaying signals between them. A collaborative venture involving teams of chemists based at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitat (LMU) in Munich, Germany, and the University of California in Berkeley has now succeeded in converting an intrinsically "blind" receptor molecule into a photoreceptor. They achieved this feat by using molecular genetic techniques to attach what amounts to a light-controlled chemical "switch" to a macromolecular receptor that is normally activated by the endogenous neurotransmitter acetylcholine.