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HaloFlippers: A General Tool for the Fluorescence Imaging of Precisely Localized Membrane Tension Changes in Living Cells.

Published version
Peer-reviewed

Type

Article

Change log

Authors

Straková, Karolína 
López-Andarias, Javier 
Jiménez-Rojo, Noemi 
Chambers, Joseph E 
Marciniak, Stefan J 

Abstract

Tools to image membrane tension in response to mechanical stimuli are badly needed in mechanobiology. We have recently introduced mechanosensitive flipper probes to report quantitatively global membrane tension changes in fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM) images of living cells. However, to address specific questions on physical forces in biology, the probes need to be localized precisely in the membrane of interest (MOI). Herein we present a general strategy to image the tension of the MOI by tagging our newly introduced HaloFlippers to self-labeling HaloTags fused to proteins in this membrane. The critical challenge in the construction of operational HaloFlippers is the tether linking the flipper and the HaloTag: It must be neither too taut nor too loose, be hydrophilic but lipophilic enough to passively diffuse across membranes to reach the HaloTags, and allow partitioning of flippers into the MOI after the reaction. HaloFlippers with the best tether show localized and selective fluorescence after reacting with HaloTags that are close enough to the MOI but remain nonemissive if the MOI cannot be reached. Their fluorescence lifetime in FLIM images varies depending on the nature of the MOI and responds to myriocin-mediated sphingomyelin depletion as well as to osmotic stress. The response to changes in such precisely localized membrane tension follows the validated principles, thus confirming intact mechanosensitivity. Examples covered include HaloTags in the Golgi apparatus, peroxisomes, endolysosomes, and the ER, all thus becoming accessible to the selective fluorescence imaging of membrane tension.

Description

Keywords

34 Chemical Sciences, Generic health relevance

Journal Title

ACS Cent Sci

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

2374-7943
2374-7951

Volume Title

6

Publisher

American Chemical Society (ACS)

Rights

Publisher's own licence
Sponsorship
Medical Research Council (G1002610)
Medical Research Council (MR/R009120/1)