An expanded palette of genetically encoded Ca²⁺ indicators.

Yongxin Zhao, Satoko Araki, Jiahui Wu, Takayuki Teramoto, Yu-Fen Chang, Masahiro Nakano, Ahmed S Abdelfattah, Manabi Fujiwara, Takeshi Ishihara, Takeharu Nagai, Robert E Campbell

Department of Chemistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2G2, Canada.

Science (New York, N.Y.) 2011 Sep 30

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Engineered fluorescent protein (FP) chimeras that modulate their fluorescence in response to changes in calcium ion (Ca(2+)) concentration are powerful tools for visualizing intracellular signaling activity. However, despite a decade of availability, the palette of single FP-based Ca(2+) indicators has remained limited to a single green hue. We have expanded this palette by developing blue, improved green, and red intensiometric indicators, as well as an emission ratiometric indicator with an 11,000% ratio change. This series enables improved single-color Ca(2+) imaging in neurons and transgenic Caenorhabditis elegans. In HeLa cells, Ca(2+) was imaged in three subcellular compartments, and, in conjunction with a cyan FP-yellow FP-based indicator, Ca(2+) and adenosine 5'-triphosphate were simultaneously imaged. This palette of indicators paints the way to a colorful new era of Ca(2+) imaging.

Citation

Yongxin Zhao, Satoko Araki, Jiahui Wu, Takayuki Teramoto, Yu-Fen Chang, Masahiro Nakano, Ahmed S Abdelfattah, Manabi Fujiwara, Takeshi Ishihara, Takeharu Nagai, Robert E Campbell. An expanded palette of genetically encoded Ca²⁺ indicators. Science (New York, N.Y.). 2011 Sep 30;333(6051):1888-91