Fluorescence imaging technique reveals hidden magnetic chemistry in living systems

A research team at the University of Tokyo has developed a new microscopy platform that can observe a previously hidden layer of biomolecular chemistry linked to weak magnetic fields. The work, led by Project Researcher Noboru Ikeya and Professor Jonathan R. Woodward at the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, addresses a long-standing technical gap in life-science measurement: Many important intermediates in spin-dependent reactions are "dark" molecules that do not emit light directly and therefore escape conventional fluorescence imaging.