A 6-nm ultra-photostable DNA FluoroCube for fluorescence imaging

Stefan Niekamp; Nico Stuurman; Ronald D Vale

doi:10.1038/s41592-020-0782-3

A 6-nm ultra-photostable DNA FluoroCube for fluorescence imaging

Nat Methods. 2020 Apr;17(4):437-441. doi: 10.1038/s41592-020-0782-3. Epub 2020 Mar 16.

Authors

Stefan Niekamp^{1

2}, Nico Stuurman^{1

2}, Ronald D Vale^{3

4}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Cellular and Molecular Pharmacology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
² Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
³ Department of Cellular and Molecular Pharmacology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA. [email protected].
⁴ Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA. [email protected].

Abstract

Photobleaching limits extended imaging of fluorescent biological samples. We developed DNA-based 'FluoroCubes' that are similar in size to the green fluorescent protein, have single-point attachment to proteins, have a ~54-fold higher photobleaching lifetime and emit ~43-fold more photons than single organic dyes. We demonstrate that DNA FluoroCubes provide outstanding tools for single-molecule imaging, allowing the tracking of single motor proteins for >800 steps with nanometer precision.

Publication types

Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

DNA / chemistry*
Fluorescent Dyes*
Humans
Microscopy, Fluorescence / methods*
Optical Imaging / methods*
Sequence Analysis, DNA

Substances

Fluorescent Dyes
DNA

Abstract

Publication types

MeSH terms

Substances

Grants and funding