LMU chemist Dirk Trauner builds photoresponsive molecular switches that
enable nerve-cell receptors to be controlled by light. In this way,
nerve-cell activity can be switched on and off at will – in the laboratory.
“But,” he says, “we hope that our research can be translated into medical
applications.” In that case, Trauner’s strategy could provide a means of
compensating for the loss of photoreceptors in the retina – one of the most
prevalent causes of blindness – or lead to more effective and less stressful
forms of cancer chemotherapy.