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Academia Sinica highly values academic freedom and freedom of speech and encourages our colleagues to provide opinions on and propose solutions to key social issues. Nonetheless, research findings and opinions expressed independently by our colleagues do not necessarily reflect the official position of Academia Sinica. We expect all colleagues to adhere to academic norms and take responsibility by citing sources and ensuring accuracy when publishing independently. Research findings and opinions provided on behalf of Academia Sinica should be published according to established procedures.

2024-07-31
  • Research Findings
  • Institute of Chemistry
Innovative Tool for Probing Protein Condensation in ALS: Light-Activated Molecular Tool Controls Protein Behavior in Cells

Understanding how proteins behave inside our cells is crucial for advancing treatments for diseases like Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). The research team, led by Dr. Joseph Jen-Tse Huang, Research Fellow at the Institute of Chemistry, Academia Sinica, have developed an innovative molecular tool that uses light to control the behavior of proteins associated with ALS, offering new hope for treatment. Biomolecular condensates are tiny droplets within cells that play a key role in regulating chemical reactions. When these droplets don’t form or behave correctly, it can lead to diseases. For instance, the protein FUS forms condensates, and its malfunction is linked to ALS. Until now, scientists lacked effective tools to study and manipulate these condensates. The research team have created a groundbreaking photocontrollable molecular probe that can change the state of FUS protein condensates from liquid to solid with light exposure. This allows researchers to observe and control how these proteins behave inside cells. Using this light-activated probe, the team discovered that the fluidity of FUS protein condensates in the cytoplasm is crucial for the health of neuronal cells. This insight opens up new possibilities for developing ALS treatments and understanding other motor neuron diseases. This research has been published on July 6, 2024 in Nature Communications, mark a significant advancement in the field. The research team including first author Hao-Yu Chuang from TIGP-CBMB at Academia Sinica, collaborated with experts from the Institute of Physics and the Institute of Chemistry.

2024-07-12
  • Research Findings
  • Institute of Atomic and Molecular Sciences
Short-wave infrared fluorescence cytometry: The next-generation analytical technology for fluorescently labelled cells

Fluorescence cytometry is a widely used method for identifying cellular expressions. Live cells are highly complex, and their precise identification often requires simultaneous staining of more than 20 biomarkers. However, in traditional flow cytometry, the number of available channels is limited by wavelength constraints, which has reached its physical limits and hinders accurate determination and identification of target cells. The research led by Assistant Research Fellow Dr. Ching-Wei Lin at the Institute of Atomic and Molecular Sciences has developed and demonstrated a detection technology that extends the spectral range to wavelengths up to 1550 nm. The most significant breakthrough of this technology is the expansion of the spectral range by more than 2.5 times. By combining this technology with short-wave infrared (SWIR; 900-1700 nm) fluorescent materials such as single-wall carbon nanotubes, indium arsenide quantum dots, down-conversion rare-earth nanoparticles, polymer dots, and donor-acceptor-donor small molecular dyes recently developed by synthetic materials chemists, it is possible to increase the number of spectral detection channels to >50, significantly improving the accuracy of complex live cell detection and identification. The main contribution of this work lies in addressing the uncertainty that scientists previously had about whether flow cytometry could achieve such detection limits in the SWIR range. Even with the existence of long-wavelength fluorescent materials, it was uncertain if the complexity of spectral mixing issues could be solved or reduced. This research provides positive insights in this regard, giving future researchers confidence to continue advancing in this direction. This research was published online on July 8, 2024 in ACS Nano, with financial support from Academia Sinica and the National Science and Technology Council in Taiwan.

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