New Concepts in Synaptic Biology Derived from Single-Molecule Imaging

1. Neuron. 2008 Aug 14;59(3):359-74. doi: 10.1016/j.neuron.2008.06.022.

New concepts in synaptic biology derived from single-molecule imaging.

Triller A(1), Choquet D.

Author information:
(1)Inserm UR497, Ecole Normale Supérieure, Biologie Cellulaire de la Synapse N&P,
46 Rue d’Ulm, 75005 Paris, France.

Single-molecule approaches give access to the full distribution of molecule
behaviors and overcome the averaging intrinsic to bulk measurement methods. They
allow access to complex processes where a given molecule can have heterogeneous
properties over time. Recent developments in single-molecule imaging technologies
have been followed by their wide application in cellular biology and are leading
to the unraveling of new mechanisms related to molecular movements. They are
shaping new concepts in the dynamic equilibria of complex biological
macromolecular assemblies such as synapses. These advances were made possible
thanks to improvements in visualization approaches combined with new strategies
to label proteins with nanoprobes. In this primer, we will review the different
approaches used to track single molecules in live neurons, compare them to bulk
measurements, and discuss the different concepts that have emerged from their
application to synaptic biology.

DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2008.06.022
PMID: 18701063 [Indexed for MEDLINE]

Auteurs Bordeaux Neurocampus