title: Molecular tattoo: subcellular confinement of drug effects.
abstract: Technological resources for sustained local control of molecular effects within organs, cells, or subcellular regions are currently unavailable, even though such technologies would be pivotal for unveiling the molecular actions underlying collective mechanisms of neuronal networks, signaling systems, complex machineries, and organism development. We present a novel optopharmacological technology named molecular tattooing, which combines photoaffinity labeling with two-photon microscopy. Molecular tattooing covalently attaches a photoreactive bioactive compound to its target by two-photon irradiation without any systemic effects outside the targeted area, thereby achieving subfemtoliter, long-term confinement of target-specific effects in vivo. As we demonstrated in melanoma cells and zebrafish embryos, molecular tattooing is suitable for dissecting collective activities by the separation of autonomous and non-autonomous molecular processes in vivo ranging from subcellular to organism level. Since a series of drugs are available for molecular tattoo, the technology can be implemented by a wide range of fields in the life sciences.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Eötvös Loránd University, 1117 Budapest, Hungary.
authors.forename: Miklós
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Képiró
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Eötvös Loránd University, 1117 Budapest, Hungary.
authors.forename: Boglárka H
authors.initials: BH
authors.lastname: Várkuti
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Eötvös Loránd University, 1117 Budapest, Hungary; Optopharma Ltd., 1015 Budapest, Hungary.
authors.forename: Anna A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Rauscher
authors.affiliation: Department of Biophysics and Radiation Biology, MTA-SE Molecular Biophysics Research Group, Semmelweis University, 1094 Budapest, Hungary.
authors.forename: Miklós S Z
authors.initials: MSZ
authors.lastname: Kellermayer
authors.affiliation: Department of Genetics, Eötvös Loránd University, 1117 Budapest, Hungary.
authors.forename: Máté
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Varga
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Eötvös Loránd University, 1117 Budapest, Hungary; MTA-ELTE Molecular Biophysics Research Group, Department of Biochemistry, Eötvös Loránd University, 1117 Budapest, Hungary; Optopharma Ltd., 1015 Budapest, Hungary. Electronic address: malnalab@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: András
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Málnási-Csizmadia
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001386:Azides / Q000737:chemistry; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D004625:Embryo, Nonmammalian / Q000378:metabolism; D005456:Fluorescent Dyes / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D006367:HeLa Cells; D006801:Humans; D008856:Microscopy, Fluorescence; D009218:Myosins / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000378:metabolism; D004364:Pharmaceutical Preparations / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D019920:Photoaffinity Labels / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D014466:Ultraviolet Rays; D015027:Zebrafish / Q000254:growth & development
chemical_list: D001386:Azides; D005456:Fluorescent Dyes; D004364:Pharmaceutical Preparations; D019920:Photoaffinity Labels; D009218:Myosins