Two-Photon Uncaging of Glutamate

• Main Author: Graham C. R. Ellis-Davies
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2019-01-01
• Series: Frontiers in Synaptic Neuroscience
• Subjects: Glu = glutamate; 2-photon; uncaging; quanta; plasticity; dendritic spikes
• Online Access: https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fnsyn.2018.00048/full

Two-photon microscopy produces the excited singlet state of a chromophore with wavelengths approximately double that used for normal excitation. Two photons are absorbed almost simultaneously, via a virtual state, and this makes the excitation technique inherently non-linear. It requires ultra-fast lasers to deliver the high flux density needed to access intrinsically very short lived intermediates, and in combination with lenses of high numerical aperture, this confines axial excitation highly. Since the two-photon excitation volume is similar to a large spine head, the technique has been widely used to study glutamatergic transmission in brain slices. Here I describe the principles of two-photon uncaging of glutamate and provide a practical guide to its application.