Ellis-Davies Graham C R
Department of Pharmacology & Physiology, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19102, USA.
Nat Methods. 2007 Aug;4(8):619-28. doi: 10.1038/nmeth1072.
Caged compounds are light-sensitive probes that functionally encapsulate biomolecules in an inactive form. Irradiation liberates the trapped molecule, permitting targeted perturbation of a biological process. Uncaging technology and fluorescence microscopy are 'optically orthogonal': the former allows control, and the latter, observation of cellular function. Used in conjunction with other technologies (for example, patch clamp and/or genetics), the light beam becomes a uniquely powerful tool to stimulate a selected biological target in space or time. Here I describe important examples of widely used caged compounds, their design features and synthesis, as well as practical details of how to use them with living cells.
笼锁化合物是一种光敏感探针，它以无活性形式功能性地包裹生物分子。照射可释放被捕获的分子，从而对生物过程进行靶向扰动。解笼技术和荧光显微镜是“光学正交的”：前者用于控制，后者用于观察细胞功能。与其他技术（例如膜片钳和/或遗传学）结合使用时，光束成为在空间或时间上刺激选定生物靶点的独特有力工具。在这里，我将介绍广泛使用的笼锁化合物的重要实例、它们的设计特点与合成方法，以及如何将它们用于活细胞的实际细节。
