On Wednesday afternoon, 29.01.25, the examining committee, chaired by Prof. Dr. Kuch, was joined by Fucsia’s former colleagues and collaborators in AG Heberle. Fucsia delivered an excellent overview of her research into the fundamental applications of AzoPC, a photo-isomerizable lipid which allowed her to change lateral tension in a lipid bilayer using light reversibly. She neatly summarized the methods used to investigate membrane dynamics such as the Langmuir Blodgett trough, polarized ATR-FTIR, fluorescence liposome assays, and single channel electrophysiology; culminating in the light activation of the mechanosensitive channel, MscL to a sub-conducting state. Fucsia combined her experimental data with DFT analysis to identify molecular changes in both the protein and lipid, induced by photo-switching AzoPC. (doi: 10.3389/fmolb.2022.905306) A lively discussion about the methods used and the system’s potential applications in medicine followed.

Fucsia is a valued alumna of AG Heberle, both scientifically and socially. Since finishing her experiments she has worked as an Editor at Wiley, and now works in the European Patent Office. We wish her every success in her future endeavors and look forward to her next visit to Berlin!