Light-Activated Nanodevices Control Cells

DNA-coated gold nanorods enable cells to be activated by light without genetic manipulation.

ruth williams
| 3 min read

Register for free to listen to this article
Listen with Speechify
0:00
3:00
Share

ABOVE: © ISTOCK.COM, DWithers

Optogenetics involves engineering cells to make them light-responsive and then using a laser to control their activity—whether in a dish or a live animal. As a research tool, optogenetics is unquestionably powerful. But the technique requires genetic manipulation, which makes it less favorable for certain clinical uses.

“[Optogenetics] is super cool for animal work,” says Marta Cerruti, who studies biosynthetic interfaces at McGill University in Montreal, “but I think it would be more easily ethically approved” to control cells if it didn’t include genetic tinkering. In devising a new technique involving gold nanorods, biochemical engineer Zhou Nie of Hunan University in China and colleagues were able to control cells with light but without genetic manipulation. “That’s what I thought was really interesting,” says Cerruti.

Nie knew gold nanorods had potential. These nanometer-sized particles heat up when irradiated with near-infrared light, and this photothermal response is already ...

Interested in reading more?

Become a Member of

The Scientist Logo
Receive full access to digital editions of The Scientist, as well as TS Digest, feature stories, more than 35 years of archives, and much more!
Already a member? Login Here

Keywords

Meet the Author

  • ruth williams

    Ruth Williams

    Ruth is a freelance journalist.

Published In

September 2019

Our Inner Neanderthal

Ancient secrets in the human genome

Share
3D illustration of a gold lipid nanoparticle with pink nucleic acid inside of it. Purple and teal spikes stick out from the lipid bilayer representing polyethylene glycol.
February 2025, Issue 1

A Nanoparticle Delivery System for Gene Therapy

A reimagined lipid vehicle for nucleic acids could overcome the limitations of current vectors.

View this Issue
Enhancing Therapeutic Antibody Discovery with Cross-Platform Workflows

Enhancing Therapeutic Antibody Discovery with Cross-Platform Workflows

sartorius logo
Considerations for Cell-Based Assays in Immuno-Oncology Research

Considerations for Cell-Based Assays in Immuno-Oncology Research

Lonza
An illustration of animal and tree silhouettes.

From Water Bears to Grizzly Bears: Unusual Animal Models

Taconic Biosciences
Sex Differences in Neurological Research

Sex Differences in Neurological Research

bit.bio logo

Products

Photo of a researcher overseeing large scale production processes in a laboratory.

Scaling Lentiviral Vector Manufacturing for Optimal Productivity

Thermo Fisher Logo
Collage-style urban graphic of wastewater surveillance and treatment

Putting Pathogens to the Test with Wastewater Surveillance

An illustration of an mRNA molecule in front of a multicolored background.

Generating High-Quality mRNA for In Vivo Delivery with lipid nanoparticles

Thermo Fisher Logo
Tecan Logo

Tecan introduces Veya: bringing digital, scalable automation to labs worldwide