1. Academic Validation
  2. Light-controlled tools

Light-controlled tools

  • Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 2012 Aug 20;51(34):8446-76. doi: 10.1002/anie.201202134.
Clara Brieke 1 Falk Rohrbach Alexander Gottschalk Günter Mayer Alexander Heckel
Affiliations

Affiliation

  • 1 Goethe University Frankfurt, Institute for Organic Chemistry and Chemical Biology Buchmann Institute for Molecular Life Sciences, Max-von-Laue-Strasse 9, 60438 Frankfurt/Main, Germany.
Abstract

Spatial and temporal control over chemical and biological processes plays a key role in life, where the whole is often much more than the sum of its parts. Quite trivially, the molecules of a cell do not form a living system if they are only arranged in a random fashion. If we want to understand these relationships and especially the problems arising from malfunction, tools are necessary that allow us to design sophisticated experiments that address these questions. Highly valuable in this respect are external triggers that enable us to precisely determine where, when, and to what extent a process is started or stopped. LIGHT is an ideal external trigger: It is highly selective and if applied correctly also harmless. It can be generated and manipulated with well-established techniques, and many ways exist to apply LIGHT to living systems--from cells to higher organisms. This Review will focus on developments over the last six years and includes discussions on the underlying technologies as well as their applications.

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