Imaging endogenous synaptic proteins in primary neurons at single-cell resolution using CRISPR/Cas9

Mol Biol Cell. 2019 Oct 15;30(22):2838-2855. doi: 10.1091/mbc.E19-04-0223. Epub 2019 Sep 11.

Abstract

Fluorescence imaging at single-cell resolution is a crucial approach to analyzing the spatiotemporal regulation of proteins within individual cells of complex neural networks. Here we present a nonviral strategy that enables the tagging of endogenous loci by CRISPR/Cas9-mediated genome editing combined with a nucleofection technique. The method allowed expression of fluorescently tagged proteins at endogenous levels, and we successfully achieved tagging of a presynaptic protein, synaptophysin (Syp), and a postsynaptic protein, PSD-95, in cultured postmitotic neurons. Superresolution fluorescence microscopy of fixed neurons confirmed the identical localization patterns of the tagged proteins to those of endogenous ones verified by immunohistochemistry. The system is also applicable for multiplexed labeling and live-cell imaging. Live imaging with total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy of a single dendritic process of a neuron double-labeled with Syp-mCherry and PSD-95-EGFP revealed the previously undescribed dynamic localization of the proteins synchronously moving along dendritic shafts. Our convenient and versatile strategy is potent for analysis of proteins whose ectopic expressions perturb cellular functions.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • CRISPR-Cas Systems / genetics
  • Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats / genetics
  • Disks Large Homolog 4 Protein / metabolism
  • Gene Editing / methods
  • Mice
  • Microscopy, Fluorescence / methods*
  • Neurons / metabolism*
  • Primary Cell Culture
  • Rats
  • Rats, Wistar
  • Single-Cell Analysis / methods*
  • Synaptophysin / metabolism

Substances

  • Disks Large Homolog 4 Protein
  • Synaptophysin