Cornell scientists have unveiled a technique that uses a cell’s own proteins as microscopic sensors to map molecular activity, according to Nature Communications. The method leverages flavoproteins—naturally occurring proteins containing magnetic molecules—to monitor protein behavior inside living cells without disrupting them.
By activating these molecules with light and measuring their signals using electron spin resonance (ESR), researchers can visualize how proteins interact, assemble, and even misfold. This breakthrough allowed the team to track the structure of an oxygen-sensing protein in bacteria and observe how it forms complex assemblies.
The study also introduced a customizable tag called iLOV, making it possible to apply this method broadly. Scientists hope it could soon reveal disease-related protein activity in mammalian cells with unprecedented clarity.
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