Imaging mitochondria and plasma membrane in live cells using solvatochromic styrylpyridines

In this study, we have synthesized four fluorescent styrene derivatives, a neutral styrylpridine, three cationic styrylpyridinium probes with and without cholesterol tether, and investigated for their absorption, emission, and cellular imaging properties. The fluorophores show solvatochromic emission attributed to intramolecular charge transfer from donor to acceptor with an emission range of 500–600 nm. The fluorescent cholesterol conjugate labels plasma membrane effectively while the fluorophores devoid of the cholesterol tether label mitochondria. Cholesterol conjugate also shows strong interaction with liposome membrane. Furthermore, the fluorophores were also used to track the mitochondria in live cells with high specificity. Cell viability assay showed overall non-toxic nature of the probes even at high concentrations. Through sidearm modifications, keeping the fluorescent core intact, we successfully targeted specific subcellular compartments of neuronal (N2a) and non-neuronal (HeLa) mammalian cell lines. This strategy of using a single molecular scaffold with subtle substitutions could be ideal in generating a variety of fluorophores targeting other subcellular compartments.Graphical AbstractCholesterol derivatives image plasma membrane and the fluorophores without cholesterol tether image mitochondria.
Source: Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology B: Biology - Category: Speech-Language Pathology Source Type: research