A sensitive and quantitative autolysosome probe for detecting autophagic activity in live and prestained fixed cells.

ABSTRACT: Autophagy is a complex, multi-step and biologically important pathway mediated by autophagosomes and autolysosomes. Accurately dissecting and detecting different stages of autophagy is important to elucidate its molecular mechanism and thereby facilitate the discovery of pharmaceutical molecules. We herein reported a small-molecule synthetic probe, Zn-G 4, which is only fluorescent upon starvation- or chemical agent-induced autophagy within the autolysosome or possible the late endosome/lysosome networks. The probe can be detected by one-photon microscopy, which gives a high signal-to-noise ratio readout of autophagic activity. The pH gradient-independent fluorescence can be detected both in live and prestained fixed cells. Moreover, the fluorescent recording can be used to quantify autoph

SUBMITTER: Chen JJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3672298 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature