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Ultrahigh-speed photochemical stimulation of neurons

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Understanding neuronal integration comes a step closer to reality with the development of a crystal-based, beam-steering microscope for uncaging neurotransmitters, which will permit experimental interrogation of the spatiotemporal interactions between the thousands of synapses a neuron receives.

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Figure 1: In photolysis of caged compounds, illustrated here by a metaphor and an example, the absorption of a photon leads to the opening of a 'cage', which liberates the trapped bioactive species.

Katie Ris

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Haydon, P., Ellis-Davies, G. Ultrahigh-speed photochemical stimulation of neurons. Nat Methods 2, 811–812 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1038/nmeth1105-811

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