Carnegie Mellon Lights Up Live Cell Imaging
Scientists from the Molecular Biosensor and Imaging Center (MBIC) at Carnegie Mellon University have developed new fluorescent proteins that could help cancer researchers get a better look at the biological activities happening inside living cells.
Carnegie Mellon’s novel proteins, known as fluorogen activating proteins or FAPs, are unusual because they’re specially designed to emit light only when bound to fluorogen dyes which are normally non-fluorescent.
MBIC’s innovation not only reduces the number of cumbersome steps scientists must take to study the biological processes of live cells, it also gives researchers the ability to precisely control when the fluorescent properties are activated. This feature lets scientists selectively track the location of proteins and biomolecules in real time and detect key changes taking place in a cell’s environment.
In addition, the fluorogens used to control the light feature can be tailored to either enter the cells or stay outside them making this FAP technology potentially valuable for the development of molecular biosensors. As one MBIC scientist explained,
“…these modifications will allow us to image multiple colors inside cells, enabling us to dynamically monitor several proteins and follow complex cellular functions.”
Chris Szent-Gyorgyi
MBIC, Carnegie Mellon University
If you’d like learn more about FAPs, Carnegie Mellon’s research is published in the February 2008 issue of Nature Biotechnology.
Source: Carnegie Mellon News
Related Links: ScienceDaily; NIH National Technology Center for Networks and Pathways
Technorati Tags: microscopy; scFv; Pennsylvania Department of Health; Pittsburgh, PA
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