Ratiometric Fluorescence Imaging for the Distribution of Nucleic Acid Content in Living Cells and Human Tissue Sections
- 31 December 2020
- journal article
- research article
- Published by American Chemical Society (ACS) in Analytical Chemistry
- Vol. 93 (3), 1612-1619
- https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.analchem.0c04064
Abstract
The misregulation of nucleic acids behavior leads to cell dysfunction and induces serious diseases. A ratiometric fluorescence probe is a powerful tool to study the dynamic behavior and function relationships of nucleic acids. However, currently, no such effective probe has been reported for in situ, real-time tracking of nucleic acids in living cells and tissue sections. Herein, the unique probe named QPP-AS was rationally designed for ratiometric fluorescence response to nucleic acids through skillful regulation of the intramolecular charge-transfer capabilities of the electron acceptor and donor. Encouraged by the advantages of the selective nucleic acid response, ideal biocompatibility, and high signal-to-noise ratio, QPP-AS has been applied for in situ, real-time ratiometric fluorescence imaging of nucleic acids in living cells for the first time. Furthermore, we have demonstrated that QPP-AS is capable of visualizing the dynamic behavior of nucleic acids during different cellular processes (e.g., cell division and apoptosis) by ratiometric fluorescence imaging. More significantly, QPP-AS has been successfully used for ratiometric fluorescence imaging of nucleic acids in human tissue sections, which provides not only the cell contour, nuclear morphology, and nuclear–plasma ratio but also the nucleic acid content information and may greatly improve accuracy in clinicopathological diagnosis.Keywords
Funding Information
- Guangdong Science and Technology Department (2019A1515110356)
- Guangxi University (A3040051003)
- China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (2019M662968)
- Taishan Scholar Foundation of Shandong Province (TS201511041)
- National Natural Science Foundation of China (21472067, 21672083, 21877048, 22077048)
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