A novel nanovesicle-based platform developed at Institute of Science Tokyo can measure hydrostatic pressure by converting pressure-induced molecular changes into fluorescence signals.

The researchers developed pyrene-modified polyionic complex vesicles and demonstrated that variations in the vesicles’ membrane stiffness regulate their pressure sensitivity. Softer vesicles showed strong sensitivity in the 0.1–50 MPa range, while stiffer vesicles showed pressure-dependent changes in fluorescence lifetime.

These findings enable the investigation of hydrostatic pressure–dependent phenomena in diverse inaccessible environments.