Stanford study is the first to demonstrate that
sophisticated, engineered light resonators can be inserted inside cells without
damaging the host. The researchers say it marks a new age in which tiny lasers
and light-emitting diodes yield new avenues in the study and influence of
living cells.
If engineers at Stanford have their way, biological research
may soon be transformed by a new class of light-emitting probes small enough to
be injected into individual cells without harm to the host. Welcome to
biophotonics, a discipline at the confluence of engineering, biology and
medicine in which light-based devices – lasers and light-emitting diodes (LEDs)
– are opening up new avenues in the study and influence of living cells.
The team described their probe in a paper published online
February 13 by the journal Nano Letters. It is the first study to demonstrate
that sophisticated engineered light resonators can be inserted inside cells
without damaging the cell. Even with a resonator embedded inside, a cell is
able to function, migrate and reproduce as normal.