title: Bioluminescent capsules for live-cell imaging.
abstract: A bioluminescent capsule was designed for illuminating cell signaling and protein localization. The capsule consists of four components, namely, a secretion peptide (SP), a luciferase body, a cargo protein (or peptide), and a membrane-localization signal (MLS). Any functional proteins sandwiched between the luciferase body and MLS may be cartable to the plasma membrane (PM), where the capsule waits for outer signals and quickly releases the embedded luciferase in response to the signals. With this strategy of locating the capsule in the PM, the bioluminescence intensity was greatly prolonged and strengthened. A staurosporine (STS)-activated apoptosis signaling was efficiently imaged with the capsule carrying a DEVD peptide. Other functional proteins, such as fluorescent proteins and luciferases, were efficiently transported to the membrane by the capsule. A 60-nm-red-shifted bioluminescence was observed with a capsule fused with other luciferases or fluorescent proteins in living cells. This study gives a new insight regarding how to illuminate cellular signals with bioluminescence in living mammalian cells.
authors.affiliation: Research Institute for Environmental Management Technology, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Onogawa 16-1, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8569, Japan. kimu-sb@aist.go.jp
authors.forename: Sung Bae
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Yuzuru
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ito
authors.forename: Masaki
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Torimura
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000187:drug effects; D019556:COS Cells; D002462:Cell Membrane / Q000378:metabolism; D002470:Cell Survival / Q000187:drug effects; D002477:Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism*; D002522:Chlorocebus aethiops; D008156:Luciferases / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D049449:Luminescence; D008163:Luminescent Measurements / Q000379:methods*; D010455:Peptides / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D021382:Protein Sorting Signals; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000187:drug effects; D019311:Staurosporine / Q000494:pharmacology; D013329:Structure-Activity Relationship
chemical_list: D010455:Peptides; D021382:Protein Sorting Signals; D008156:Luciferases; D019311:Staurosporine