Synaptic vesicle reformation depends on clathrin, an abundant protein that polymerizes around newly forming vesicles. However, how clathrin is involved in synaptic recycling in vivo remains unresolved. We test clathrin function during synaptic endocytosis using clathrin heavy chain (chc) mutants combined with chc photoinactivation to circumvent early embryonic lethality associated with chc muta...

In the lobster Homarus, the 2 identified PS neurons have a strong suppressive modulatory effect on the activity of the pyloric network in the STG (Cazalets et al., 1990). In the present paper, we consider the effects of PS on individual pyloric neurons isolated from their partners in the network by cell photoinactivation and synaptic blockade. Three types of PS action are described: (1) a trans...

BACKGROUND Coral diseases are emerging as a serious threat to coral reefs worldwide. Of nine coral infectious diseases, whose pathogens have been characterized, six are caused by agents from the family Vibrionacae, raising questions as to their origin and role in coral disease aetiology. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS Here we report on a Vibrio zinc-metalloprotease causing rapid photoinactiva...

Sensorineural hearing loss, which stems primarily from the failure of mechanosensory hair cells, changes the traveling waves that transmit acoustic signals along the cochlea. However, the connection between cochlear mechanics and the amplificatory function of hair cells remains unclear. Using an optical technique that permits the targeted inactivation of prestin, a protein of outer hair cells t...

Determination of the absorption spectra of pure preparations of Northrop's crystalline pepsin inactivated by irradiation with ultra-violet light shows that the total absorption in the ultra-violet region of the spectrum increases with the degree of inactivation. This increase is especially marked between 2400 and 2750 A.u. The rate of photoinactivation is shown to be sensitive to changes in pH,...

Over the last decades, the number of pathogenic multi-resistant microorganisms has grown dramatically, which has stimulated the search for novel strategies to combat antimicrobial resistance. Antimicrobial photodynamic therapy (aPDT) is one of the promising alternatives to conventional treatments based on antibiotics. Here, we present a comparative study of two aryl tricationic porphycenes wher...

Over the last 20 years, the number of pathogenic multi-resistant microorganisms has grown steadily, which has stimulated the search for new strategies to combat antimicrobial resistance. Antimicrobial photodynamic therapy (aPDT), also called photodynamic inactivation, is emerging as a promising alternative to treatments based on conventional antibiotics. We have explored the effectiveness of me...