Project description:Sub-diffraction-limit imaging can be achieved by sequential localization of photoactivatable fluorophores, for which the image resolution depends on the number of photons detected per localization. We report a strategy for fluorophore caging that creates photoactivatable probes with high photon yields. Upon photoactivation, these probes can provide 10(4)-10(6) photons per localization and allow imaging of fixed samples with resolutions of several nanometers. This strategy can be applied to many fluorophores across the visible spectrum.
Project description:Nanoscopy has now become a real procedure in fluorescence microscopy of living cells. The STED/RESOLFT family of nanoscopy approaches has the best prospects for delivering high speed imaging, but the history of STED includes a continuing struggle to reduce the deactivation power applied, along with difficulties in achieving simultaneous multicolor images. In this manuscript, we present a concept for a similar real-time nanoscopy, using a new class of bipartite probes that separate the luminescent and quenching functions into two coupled molecules. In particular, the STAQ (Superresolution via Transiently Activated Quencher) example we show herein employs the excited state absorbance (not ground state) of the partner to accept energy from and quench the luminescent dye. The result is that much less deactivation power is needed for superresolved (∼50 nm) imaging. Moreover, the TAQ partner excited by the "donut" beam is shown to quench several different visible dyes via the same mechanism, opening the door to easier multicolor imaging. We demonstrate three dyes sharing the same deactivation and show examples of superresolved multicolor images. We suggest STAQ will facilitate the growth of real-time nanoscopy by reducing confounding photodamage within living cells while expanding the nanoscopist's palette.
Project description:The mitochondrial contact site and cristae organizing system (MICOS) is a multisubunit protein complex that is essential for the proper architecture of the mitochondrial inner membrane. MICOS plays a key role in establishing and maintaining crista junctions, tubular or slit-like structures that connect the cristae membrane with the inner boundary membrane, thereby ensuring a contiguous inner membrane. MICOS is enriched at crista junctions, but the detailed distribution of its subunits around crista junctions is unclear because such small length scales are inaccessible with established fluorescence microscopy. By targeting individually activated fluorophores with an excitation beam featuring a central zero-intensity point, the nanoscopy method called MINFLUX delivers single-digit nanometer-scale three-dimensional (3D) resolution and localization precision. We employed MINFLUX nanoscopy to investigate the submitochondrial localization of the core MICOS subunit Mic60 in relation to two other MICOS proteins, Mic10 and Mic19. We demonstrate that dual-color 3D MINFLUX nanoscopy is applicable to the imaging of organellar substructures, yielding a 3D localization precision of ∼5 nm in human mitochondria. This isotropic precision facilitated the development of an analysis framework that assigns localization clouds to individual molecules, thus eliminating a source of bias when drawing quantitative conclusions from single-molecule localization microscopy data. MINFLUX recordings of Mic60 indicate ringlike arrangements of multiple molecules with a diameter of 40 to 50 nm, suggesting that Mic60 surrounds individual crista junctions. Statistical analysis of dual-color MINFLUX images demonstrates that Mic19 is generally in close proximity to Mic60, whereas the spatial coordination of Mic10 with Mic60 is less regular, suggesting structural heterogeneity of MICOS.
Project description:The widely popular class of quantum-dot molecular labels could so far not be utilized as standard fluorescent probes in STED (stimulated emission depletion) nanoscopy. This is because broad quantum-dot excitation spectra extend deeply into the spectral bands used for STED, thus compromising the transient fluorescence silencing required for attaining super-resolution. Here we report the discovery that STED nanoscopy of several red-emitting commercially available quantum dots is in fact successfully realized by the increasingly popular 775 nm STED laser light. A resolution of presently ? 50 nm is demonstrated for single quantum dots, and sub-diffraction resolution is further shown for imaging of quantum-dot-labelled vimentin filaments in fibroblasts. The high quantum-dot photostability enables repeated STED recordings with >1,000 frames. In addition, we have evidence that the tendency of quantum-dot labels to blink is largely suppressed by combined action of excitation and STED beams. Quantum-dot STED significantly expands the realm of application of STED nanoscopy, and, given the high stability of these probes, holds promise for extended time-lapse imaging.
Project description:We have studied the degree to which fluorescent Ca(2+) indicator dyes, and green fluorescent protein and its variants, can be used together. We find that the most commonly used fluorescent protein, enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP), seriously contaminates fura 2 signals. We suggest two alternative combinations for which there is no detectable contamination of the Ca(2+) indicator signal by the fluorescent protein. Blue fluorescent protein can be used with the Ca(2+) indicator Fura Red; EGFP can be used with the Ca(2+) indicator X-Rhod 1. The use of these combinations will permit the accurate measurement of Ca(2+) signals in cells transfected with fluorescent proteins.
Project description:The simultaneous measurement of gene expression for thousands of genes in a single analysis by the microarray technology allows researchers to describe transcriptomes in various samples of interest. Problems with variation in data quality derived from microarray experiments are well known and might result from poor RNA quality, background problems, or sub optimal signal strength. To assess variation due to the fluorescent dye chosen, three different dye pairs were tested for labelling of cDNA in gene expression analysis experiments on a porcine immune focused oligonucleotide microarray (POM3). This in-house oligonucleotide microarray allowed a direct comparison of background fluorescence, Median signal intensities, numbers of spots detected, and resistance to photobleaching between different dye pairs. We tested Alexa Flour 546/647, Cy3/Cy5 as well as Oyster 550/650 all from Genisphere Inc., Hatfield, PA, USA. Keywords: Comparison of fluorescent dyes
Project description:The calyx of Held, a large glutamatergic terminal in the mammalian auditory brainstem has been extensively employed to study presynaptic structure and function in the central nervous system. Nevertheless, the nanoarchitecture of presynaptic proteins and subcellular components in the calyx terminal and its relation to functional properties of synaptic transmission is only poorly understood. Here, we use stimulated emission depletion (STED) nanoscopy of calyces in thin sections of aldehyde-fixed rat brain tissue to visualize immuno-labeled synaptic proteins including VGluT1, synaptophysin, Rab3A and synapsin with a lateral resolution of approximately 40 nm. Excitation multiplexing of suitable fluorescent dyes deciphered the spatial arrangement of the presynaptic phospho-protein synapsin relative to synaptic vesicles labeled with anti-VGluT1. Both predominantly occupied the same focal volume, yet may exist in exclusive domains containing either VGluT1 or synapsin immunoreactivity. While the latter have been observed with diffraction-limited fluorescence microscopy, STED microscopy for the first time revealed VGluT1-positive domains lacking synapsins. This observation supports the hypothesis that molecularly and structurally distinct synaptic vesicle pools operate in presynaptic nerve terminals.
Project description:Fluorescent proteins facilitate a variety of imaging paradigms in live and fixed samples. However, they lose their fluorescence after heavy fixation, hindering applications such as correlative light and electron microscopy (CLEM). Here we report engineered variants of the photoconvertible Eos fluorescent protein that fluoresce and photoconvert normally in heavily fixed (0.5-1% OsO4), plastic resin-embedded samples, enabling correlative super-resolution fluorescence imaging and high-quality electron microscopy.
Project description:The simultaneous measurement of gene expression for thousands of genes in a single analysis by the microarray technology allows researchers to describe transcriptomes in various samples of interest. Problems with variation in data quality derived from microarray experiments are well known and might result from poor RNA quality, background problems, or sub optimal signal strength. To assess variation due to the fluorescent dye chosen, three different dye pairs were tested for labelling of cDNA in gene expression analysis experiments on a porcine immune focused oligonucleotide microarray (POM3). This in-house oligonucleotide microarray allowed a direct comparison of background fluorescence, Median signal intensities, numbers of spots detected, and resistance to photobleaching between different dye pairs. We tested Alexa Flour 546/647, Cy3/Cy5 as well as Oyster 550/650 all from Genisphere Inc., Hatfield, PA, USA. Keywords: Comparison of fluorescent dyes Each dye pairs were hybridized on two slides. The same two samples were compared on all the slides used in the present study. The liver sample from a healthy animal was labeled with the high wavelength dyes (Oyster 650/Alexa 647/Cy5) and the liver sample from the sick animal was labeled with the low wavelength dyes (Oyster 550/Alexa 546/Cy3). Each slide was scanned 3 times, immediately after hybridization (first round), after 1 month of storage in darkness and after 24 hours on the bench (12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of artificial light). Total RNA from the infected and control liver samples were extracted using RNeasy midi kit (Qiagen, Denmark) and DNase treated using RNase-Free DNase Set (Qiagen). 3DNATM Array 900 expression array detection kits (Genisphere Inc.) were used for the labeling and cDNA synthesis reaction of the RNA in the present study. Three different pairs of fluorescent dyes Oyster 550/650 (Genisphere Inc.), Alexa 546/647 (Genisphere Inc.), and Cy3/Cy5 (Genisphere Inc.) were used in separate labeling reactions. Labeling was done according to the manufacturers protocol for large-scale cDNA synthesis. For the cDNA synthesis 9.2µg total RNA from each liver sample was used and mixed with 20U AmpliQ RTenzyme and 10x first strand buffer (Bie og Berntsen, Rødovre, Denmark). Hybridization and washing were performed according to the manufacturers instructions (Genisphere) using Corning hybridization chambers. For one cDNA hybridization reaction; 6.5µl cDNA from each synthesis, 0.5µl Salmon sperm (10µg/µl) and 13.5µl 2 x Formamide-Based Hybridization Buffer (3DNA Array 900, Genisphere) was used. A total hybridization mix of 29µl was applied under a 22I x 25 mm LifterSlip (Erie Scientific, Portsmouth, NH, USA) carefully avoiding air bubbles. Slides were incubated at 44oC in a water bath over night. Wash buffer 1 (3DNA Array 900, Genisphere) was preheated to 44oC for the post cDNA hybridization wash. For two 3DNA hybridization reaction mixes; 2.5µl of each Capture reagent and 26µl SDS-Based hybridization buffer was mixed to a final volume of 52µl. 26µl 3DNA hybridization mix was applied to each slide, and incubated in darkness in a water bath at 50oC for 4 hours. Wash buffer 1 was preheated to 60oC for the post 3DNA hybridization wash. Slides were scanned on a CCD ArrayWoRxe auto (Applied Precision, Issaquah, WA, USA) using different exposure times (0.3 for 595 nm and 1.2 for 685 nm).
Project description:Cell phenotypes and functions are influenced by dynamic interactions with their microenvironment. To examine cellular spatiotemporal activity, we developed SPACECAT—Spatially PhotoActivatable Color Encoded Cell Address Tags—to annotate, track, and isolate cells while preserving viability. In SPACECAT, samples are stained with photocaged fluorescent molecules and cells are labeled by uncaging those molecules with user-patterned near-UV light. SPACECAT offers single-cell precision and temporal stability across diverse cell and tissue types. Illustratively, we target crypt-like regions in patient-derived intestinal organoids to enrich for stem-like and actively mitotic cells, matching literature expectations. Moreover, we apply SPACECAT to ex vivo tissue sections from four healthy organs and an autochthonous lung tumor model. Lastly, we provide a computational framework to identify spatially-biased transcriptome patterns and enriched phenotypes. This minimally perturbative and broadly applicable method links cellular spatiotemporal and/or behavioral phenotypes with diverse downstream assays, enabling insights into the connections between tissue microenvironments and (dys)function.