Flash Photolysis of Caged Compounds: Casting Light on Physiological Processes

Photorelease of bioactive molecules from inactive precursors is a very powerful tool for the study of the molecular mechanisms underlying physiological processes as diverse as ionic channel modulation, exocytosis, phototransduction, ligand-receptor interaction, and cross-bridge activity. A brief account of the methodology, available compounds, and fields of application is presented here.