title: Taking the ruler to the jungle: single-molecule FRET for understanding biomolecular structure and dynamics in live cells.
abstract: Single-molecule Förster resonance energy transfer (smFRET) serves as a molecular ruler that is ideally posed to study static and dynamic heterogeneity in living cells. Observing smFRET in cells requires appropriately integrated labeling, internalization and imaging strategies, and significant progress has been made towards that goal. Pioneering studies have demonstrated smFRET detection in both prokaryotic and eukaryotic systems, using both wide-field and confocal microscopies, and have started to answer exciting biological questions. We anticipate that future technical developments will open the door to smFRET for the study of structure, conformational changes and kinetics of biomolecules in living cells.
authors: Biological Physics Research Group, Clarendon Laboratory, Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3PU, UK. Electronic address: marko.sustarsic@physics.ox.ac.uk.
authors: Marko
authors: M
authors: Sustarsic
authors: Biological Physics Research Group, Clarendon Laboratory, Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3PU, UK. Electronic address: kapanidis@physics.ox.ac.uk.
authors: Achillefs N
authors: AN
authors: Kapanidis
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D031541:Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer / Q000379:methods; D005456:Fluorescent Dyes; D006801:Humans; D008958:Models, Molecular; D008968:Molecular Conformation
chemical_list: D005456:Fluorescent Dyes