scholarly journals Chromatin nanoscale compaction in live cells visualized by acceptor-donor ratio corrected FRET between DNA dyes

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simone Pelicci ◽  
Alberto Diaspro ◽  
Luca Lanzanò

AbstractChromatin nanoscale architecture in live cells can be studied by Forster Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET) between fluorescently labeled chromatin components, such as histones. A higher degree of nanoscale compaction is detected as a higher FRET level, since this corresponds to a higher degree of proximity between donor and acceptor molecules. However, in such a system the stoichiometry of the donors and acceptors engaged in the FRET process is not well defined and, in principle, FRET variations could be caused by variations in the acceptor-donor ratio rather than distance. Here we show that a FRET value independent of the acceptor-donor ratio can be obtained by Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging (FLIM) detection of FRET combined with a normalization of the FRET level to a pixel-wise estimation of the acceptor-donor ratio. We use this method to study FRET between two DNA binding dyes staining the nuclei of live cells. We show that acceptor-donor ratio corrected FRET imaging reveals variations of nanoscale compaction in different chromatin environments. As an application, we monitor the rearrangement of chromatin in response to laser-induced micro-irradiation and reveal that DNA is rapidly decompacted, at the nanoscale, in response to DNA damage induction.

2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (10) ◽  
pp. 4071-4089 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas J. Kelly ◽  
Sean C. Warren ◽  
Dominic Alibhai ◽  
Sunil Kumar ◽  
Yuriy Alexandrov ◽  
...  

An HCA-FLIM instrument is presented alongside exemplar oligomerisation, intermolecular and intramolecular FRET assays that require robust measurement of small lifetime changes.


2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anca Margineanu ◽  
Jia Jia Chan ◽  
Douglas J. Kelly ◽  
Sean C. Warren ◽  
Delphine Flatters ◽  
...  

Abstract We present a high content multiwell plate cell-based assay approach to quantify protein interactions directly in cells using Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) read out by automated fluorescence lifetime imaging (FLIM). Automated FLIM is implemented using wide-field time-gated detection, typically requiring only 10 s per field of view (FOV). Averaging over biological, thermal and shot noise with 100’s to 1000’s of FOV enables unbiased quantitative analysis with high statistical power. Plotting average donor lifetime vs. acceptor/donor intensity ratio clearly identifies protein interactions and fitting to double exponential donor decay models provides estimates of interacting population fractions that, with calibrated donor and acceptor fluorescence intensities, can yield dissociation constants. We demonstrate the application to identify binding partners of MST1 kinase and estimate interaction strength among the members of the RASSF protein family, which have important roles in apoptosis via the Hippo signalling pathway. K D values broadly agree with published biochemical measurements.


2013 ◽  
Vol 203 (3) ◽  
pp. 445-455 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cedric Espenel ◽  
Bipul R. Acharya ◽  
Geri Kreitzer

We showed previously that the kinesin-2 motor KIF17 regulates microtubule (MT) dynamics and organization to promote epithelial differentiation. How KIF17 activity is regulated during this process remains unclear. Several kinesins, including KIF17, adopt compact and extended conformations that reflect autoinhibited and active states, respectively. We designed biosensors of KIF17 to monitor its activity directly in single cells using fluorescence lifetime imaging to detect Förster resonance energy transfer. Lifetime data are mapped on a phasor plot, allowing us to resolve populations of active and inactive motors in individual cells. Using this biosensor, we demonstrate that PKC contributes to the activation of KIF17 and that this is required for KIF17 to stabilize MTs in epithelia. Furthermore, we show that EB1 recruits KIF17 to dynamic MTs, enabling its accumulation at MT ends and thus promoting MT stabilization at discrete cellular domains.


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