Applications of phototransformable fluorescent proteins for tracking the dynamics of cellular components

Abstract

In the past few decades, fluorescent proteins have revolutionized the field of cell biology. Phototransformable fluorescent proteins are capable of changing their excitation and emission spectra after being exposed to specific wavelength(s) of light. The majority of phototransformable fluorescent proteins originated from marine organisms. Genetic engineering of these proteins has made available many choices for different colors, modes of conversion, and other biophysical properties. Their phototransformative property has allowed highlighting and tracking of subpopulations of cells, organelles, and proteins in living systems. Furthermore, phototransformable fluorescent proteins paved new ways for superresolution fluorescence microscopy and optogenetics manipulation of proteins. One of the major advantages of phototransformable fluorescent proteins is their applicability for visualizing newly synthesized proteins that are en route to their final destinations. In this manuscript, we will discuss biological applications of phototransformable fluorescent proteins with special emphasis on the applications of tracking membrane proteins in vertebrate photoreceptor cells.1

Photolabile coumarins with improved efficiency through azetidinyl substitution

“…4 , for synthesis see ESI † ), which is a photoactivatable fluorescein probe. Photoactivatable dyes are useful for a number of applications including cell tracking, 30 intracellular diffusion experiments 31 and super-resolution microscopy. 32 Live human cervical cancer (HeLa) cells were incubated with compound 6 in growth medium for 30 min.…”

Disrupted Plasma Membrane Protein Homeostasis in a Xenopus Laevis Model of Retinitis Pigmentosa

“…Dendra2 is a photoconvertible fluorescent protein engineered to irreversibly shift its emission peak from shorter (507 nm, green) to longer (573 nm, red) wavelength (Nemet et al, 2015a). This photoconversion technique allowed us to study the destiny of photoconverted red Rho Q344ter -Dend2 by discriminating it from newly synthesized green Rho Q344ter -Dend2 coming from the Golgi apparatus.…”

A General Mechanism of Photoconversion of Green‐to‐Red Fluorescent Proteins Based on Blue and Infrared Light Reduces Phototoxicity in Live‐Cell Single‐Molecule Imaging

“…Photoconvertible fluorescent proteins (pcFPs) irreversibly change their optical properties when illuminated by specific wavelengths. They are key for single‐molecule super‐resolution imaging, single‐molecule tracking and dynamic imaging . Fast maturing and monomeric variants are a common choice in quantitative fluorescence microscopy applications .…”