Photopharmacology -- light-gated control of the cytoskeleton

(Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München) Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich researchers have developed photoresponsive derivatives of the anticancer drug Taxol®, which allow light-based control of cytoskeleton dynamics in neurons. The agents can optically pattern cell division and may elucidate how Taxol acts.