While high levels of cholesterol are linked to heart disease, stroke, and other health problems, this complex and vital molecule is found in every cell of the body and regulates crucial processes. By building light-controlled molecules that look and act like cholesterol, the University of Pennsylvania's Dirk Trauner have created a new set of tools allowing the researchers to toggle cholesterol’s biological activity on or off, paving the way for advanced therapeutics. 

New research from the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences shows that neurons can stabilize their signaling using a fast, physical mechanism — not the electrical activity scientists long assumed was required.