Invited by Valentina Emiliani, Andrew Plested ,Professor of Cellular Biophysics - Humboldt University Berlin will give a talk on Friday 30th June, 10.30 AM, in the conference room of the UCL, 13 Rue Moreau.

This talk will be on "Seeing glutamate at central synapses".

Abstract
Glutamate is the major fast excitatory neurotransmitter in the nervous system, and researchers have for decades pursued tools for monitoring glutamate release in real time. Optical reporters, primarily genetically-encoded glutamate sensors, are now the most popular approach, particularly following the advent of the intensity-based glutamate-sensing fluorescent reporter (iGluSnFR). Several variants with improved brightness, kinetics and spectral range were developed. We have targeted iGluSnFR to postsynaptic compartments, which improved several properties of the sensor and revealed unexpected drawbacks of the original construct. These results further demonstrate the importance of subcellular targeting for optogenetic actuators and reporters.