细胞生物学

AMPA-type receptors are transported large distances to support synaptic plasticity at distal dendritic locations. Studying the motion of AMPA receptor⁺ vesicles can improve our understanding of the mechanisms that underlie learning and memory. Nevertheless, technical challenges that prevent the visualization of AMPA receptor⁺ vesicles limit our ability to study how these vesicles are trafficked. Existing methods rely on the overexpression of fluorescent protein-tagged AMPA receptors from plasmids, resulting in a saturated signal that obscures vesicles. Photobleaching must be applied to detect individual AMPA receptor⁺ vesicles, which may eliminate important vesicle populations from analysis. Here, we present a protocol to study AMPA receptor⁺ vesicles that addresses these challenges by 1) tagging AMPA receptors expressed from native loci with HaloTag and 2) employing a block-and-chase strategy with Janelia Fluor-conjugated HaloTag ligand to achieve sparse AMPA receptor labeling that obviates the need for photobleaching. After timelapse imaging is performed, AMPA receptor⁺ vesicles can be identified during image analysis, and their motion can be characterized using a single-particle tracking pipeline.

Three-dimensional cell models, such as spheroids, represent a more physiological arrangement in which cells can grow, allowing them to develop cell–cell interactions in all dimensions. The most common methods for growing spheroids are scaffold-based, typically using either extracellular matrix or hydrogels as a physical support for the cellular assembly. One key problem with this approach is that the spheroids that are produced can be highly variable in size and shape. The protocol presented here allows for the systematic production of uniform spheroids in a short time frame by utilising a micropatterned plate. We show that spheroids can be used to investigate fundamental research questions, such as how the endomembrane system is organised in cells. Our protocol can be used in a manual or automated manner, potentially allowing scaling up for screening applications. Furthermore, without the complication of removing the spheroids from the extracellular matrix or hydrogel, as would be required in scaffold-based systems, spheroids can easily be used in other downstream applications.

Amyloplasts, non-photosynthetic plastids specialized for starch synthesis and storage, proliferate in storage tissue cells of plants. To date, studies of amyloplast replication in roots and the ovule nucelli from various plant species have been performed using electron and fluorescence microscopy. However, a complete understanding of amyloplast replication remains unclear due to the absence of experimental systems capable of tracking their morphology and behavior in living cells. Recently, we demonstrated that Arabidopsis ovule integument could provide a platform for live-cell imaging of amyloplast replication. This system enables precise analysis of amyloplast number and shape, including the behavior of stroma-filled tubules (stromules), during proplastid-to-amyloplast development in post-mitotic cells. Here, we provide technical guidelines for observing and quantifying amyloplasts using conventional fluorescence microscopy in wild-type and several plastid-division mutants of Arabidopsis.

Phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate [PI(4,5)P₂] is a phospholipid enriched on the cytoplasmic leaflet of the plasma membrane, where it plays important roles in membrane trafficking and cytoskeletal dynamics through proteins that directly bind to it. PI(4,5)P₂ can be metabolized to other phosphorylated forms of phosphatidylinositol to regulate numerous processes such as cell growth and development. PI(4,5)P₂ can also be hydrolyzed to generate the second messengers diacylglycerol (DAG) and inositol triphosphate (IP₃). Altered metabolism or mislocalization of PI(4,5)P₂ can perturb one or more of its functions and contribute to disease states. Here, we present a protocol to visualize and quantify the localization of PI(4,5)P₂ in live cells. The protocol uses a highly specific PI(4,5)P₂ protein binding domain coupled to enhanced green fluorescence protein (PH-PLCD1-GFP), enabling localization and quantification of cytosol-facing PI(4,5)P₂ to be determined. Localization and quantification of the PH-PLCD1-GFP, PI(4,5)P₂ specific probe, is enabled by fluorescence imaging and confocal microscopy. This approach can be used to study the dynamics of PI(4,5)P₂ localization temporally in live cells under both physiological and pathological conditions.

Expansion microscopy (ExM) is an imaging technique that enables super-resolution imaging of biological specimens using conventional confocal microscopy. This process entails the isotropic physical expansion of a (biomolecular) sample that has been cross-linked to a swellable polymer. The grafting of biomolecules (and the subsequent fluorescent readout) is accomplished by introducing an acryloyl group to the amine groups of lysine residues within the proteins, enabling subsequent imaging. However, visualizing actin filaments with high spatial resolution using ExM remains challenging. Herein, we report the construction of a phalloidin conjugate containing actin stains and their application in ExM. This protocol highlights the efficacy of trifunctional linker (TRITON/Actin-ExM) for F-actin imaging, demonstrating that TRITON-labeled actin allows for efficient anchoring and signal retention, enabling robust visualization of actin filaments in expansion microscopy.

In live-cell imaging, autofluorescence is often regarded as a negative factor that interferes with the accurate visualization of target fluorescence due to a phenomenon known as crosstalk. However, autofluorescence has also been effectively utilized as an organellar marker. For instance, the intense autofluorescence of chlorophyll in the red wavelength is widely used to visualize chloroplasts, the photosynthetic organelle in plants. Recently, we demonstrated that nuclei in plant cells emit phytochrome-derived autofluorescence in the red to infrared wavelength range, which can be visualized by a conventional confocal microscope equipped with a 640 nm laser. Here, we present protocols for growing plants and conducting confocal imaging of the near-infrared autofluorescence of nuclei in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Research into nervous system injuries and regeneration has emerged as a crucial field of study. In many cases such as trauma or stroke, both axons and dendrites are equally damaged; however, studying injury and repair mechanisms in both neurite processes (axons and dendrites) of the same neuron has been challenging. Additionally, correlating the behavioral aspects of neuronal injury with anatomical regeneration is important for a better understanding of the functional rewiring process. Here, we describe protocols for injuring the dendrites and the axon of the PVD neuron of C. elegans using a two-photon infrared (IR) femtosecond laser system, and subsequent imaging of injured neurites during the course of regeneration. Additionally, we describe the protocols for the behavioral study concerning the PVD neuron and their analysis, which can offer valuable insights. These assays can be implemented to assess the function of the pathways that play specific roles in dendrite vs. axon regeneration.

Skeletal muscle–specific stem cells are responsible for regenerating damaged muscle tissue following strenuous physical activity. These muscle stem cells, also known as satellite cells (SCs), can activate, proliferate, and differentiate to form new skeletal muscle cells. SCs can be identified and visualized utilizing optical and electron microscopy techniques. However, studies identifying SCs using fluorescent imaging techniques vary significantly within their methodology and lack fundamental aspects of the guidelines for rigor and reproducibility that must be included within immunohistochemical studies. Therefore, a standardized method for identifying human skeletal muscle stem cells is warranted, which will improve the reproducibility of future studies investigating satellite activity. Additionally, although it has been suggested that SC shape can change after exercise, there are currently no methods for examining SC morphology. Thus, we present an integrated workflow for three-dimensional visualization of satellite cell nuclei, validated by the spatial context of the fluorescent labeling and multichannel signal overlap. Our protocol includes, from start to finish, post-biopsy extraction and embedding, tissue sectioning, immunofluorescence, imaging steps and acquisition, and three-dimensional data post-processing. Because of the depth volume generated from the confocal microscope z-stacks, this will allow future studies to investigate the morphology of SC nuclei and their activity, instead of traditionally observing them in two-dimensional space (x, y).

Super-resolution imaging of RNA–protein (RNP) condensates has shown that most are composed of different immiscible phases reflected by a heterogenous distribution of their main components. Linking RNA–protein condensate’s inner organization with their different functions in mRNA regulation remains a challenge, particularly in multicellular organisms. Drosophila germ granules are a model of RNA–protein condensates known for their role in mRNA storage and localized protein production in the early embryo. Present at the posterior pole of the embryo within a specialized cytoplasm called germplasm, they are composed of maternal mRNAs as well as four main proteins that play a key role in germ granule formation, maintenance, and function. Germ granules are necessary and sufficient to drive germ cell formation through translational regulation of maternal mRNAs such as nanos. Due to their localization at the posterior tip of the ovoid embryo and small size, the classical imaging setup does not provide enough resolution to reach their inner organization. Here, we present a specific mounting design that reduces the distance between the germ granule and the objectives. This method provides optimal resolution for the imaging of germ granules by super-resolution microscopy, allowing us to demonstrate their biphasic organization characterized by the enrichment of the four main proteins in the outermost part of the granule. Furthermore, combined with the direct visualization of nanos mRNA translation using the Suntag approach, this method enables the localization of translation events within the germ granule’s inner organization and thus reveals the spatial organization of its functions. This approach reveals how germ granules serve simultaneously as mRNA storage hubs and sites of translation activation during development. This work also highlights the importance of considering condensates’ inner organization when investigating their functions.

The growth cone is a highly motile tip structure that guides axonal elongation and directionality in differentiating neurons. Migrating immature neurons also exhibit a growth cone–like structure (GCLS) at the tip of the leading process. However, it remains unknown whether the GCLS in migrating immature neurons shares the morphological and molecular features of axonal growth cones and can thus be considered equivalent to them. Here, we describe a detailed method for time-lapse imaging and optical manipulation of growth cones using a super-resolution laser-scanning microscope. To observe growth cones in elongating axons and migrating neurons, embryonic cortical neurons and neonatal ventricular–subventricular zone (V-SVZ)-derived neurons, respectively, were transfected with plasmids encoding fluorescent protein–conjugated cytoskeletal probes and three-dimensionally cultured in Matrigel, which mimics the in vivo background. At 2–5 days in vitro, the morphology and dynamics of these growth cones and their associated cytoskeletal molecules were assessed by time-lapse super-resolution imaging. The use of photoswitchable cytoskeletal inhibitors, which can be reversibly and precisely controlled by laser illumination at two different wavelengths, revealed the spatiotemporal regulatory machinery and functional significance of growth cones in neuronal migration. Furthermore, machine learning–based methods enabled us to automatically segment growth cone morphology from elongating axons and the leading process. This protocol provides a cutting-edge methodology for studying the growth cone in developmental and regenerative neuroscience, being adaptable for various cell biology and imaging applications.