Laser Surgery

Laser surgery is a powerful technique that precisely manipulates and probes biological media at a tissue, cellular, or even subcellular level. Irradiating samples with laser pulses, deposit a small amount of energy (tens of nanojoules) in a specific location, leading to a microexplosion (ablation) that dissects the sample with a resolution below 1 um. Short-pulse femtosecond lasers can even ablate individual neuronal fibers while leaving nearby fibers intact. This precision allows us to selectively study individual neurons, fibers, and their connections.

Laser surgery in C. elegans is particularly useful in the field of neuroregeneration, where we explore ways to promote the regrowth of axons. In the NeuroLab we sever fibers of specific neurons to assess regenerative responses. These experiments reveal important insights into the mechanisms of neuroregeneration and potentially identify novel therapeutic targets to treat neuroinjuries and neurodegenerative disease. Click here to read more about neuroregeneration and what we do in the NeuroLab with laser surgery on C. elegans.