Caged Compounds

Photolysis is an experimental tool that enables the release of ligands adjacent to their receptors, overcoming the effects of diffusion that will otherwise dominate the kinetics of the receptor activation. A further consequence of restricted diffusional access is an increased influence of receptor desensitization, metabolism and ligand uptake in determining the size and time-course of the response to a ligand, particularly in complex tissue preparations such as brain slices, or at intracellular ...