Plugging into Cells with light

By leveraging naturally light-sensitive proteins from plants, we can put other biological signals under light-based control.

In my work, I'm using iLID, a modified version of AsLov2 (a natural protein from oats) to synthetically control localization of PI3K (an important signaling molecule in growth and migration) in living cells. iLID responds to blue light by exposing a peptide (SsrA) that can then bind to its partner (SspB). By anchoring the peptide-containing anchor to the membrane and engineering the binding parter to also bind the cell's own PI3K, we can now control when and where PI3K is present at the plasma membrane by shining blue light on different portions of the cell. We can pattern this light using a digital micromirror device, the same technology that powers movie projectors. This is shown by the white outlines in the movies above

We can now ask what rules govern PI3K-driven migration patterns in neutrophils. As readouts, we can examine localization of biosensors that report on the activities of different parts of the pathway and we can also examine changes in cell movement patterns.