Real-Time analysis of exosome secretion of single cells with single molecule imaging

The exosome-mediated response can promote or restrain the diseases by regulating the intracellular pathways,making the exosome become an effective marker for diagnosis and therapeutic control at the single-cell level.However,real-time analysis is hard to be achieved with traditional approaches because the exosomes usually need to be enriched by ultracentrifugation for a measurable signal-to-noise ratio.Recently developed label-free single-molecule imaging approaches may become an real-time quantitative tool for the analysis of single exosomes and related secretion behaviors of single living cells owing to their extreme sensitivity.

Single Molecule Imaging in Living Cell with Optical Method

Significance, difficult, international developing actuality and our completed works for single molecules imaging in living cell with optical method are described respectively. Additionally we give out some suggestions for the technology development further.

Single-molecule imaging reveals the stoichiometry change of epidermal growth factor receptor during transactivation by β_2-adrenergic receptor

Stimulation of G protein-coupled receptors(GPCRs) can lead to the transactivation of the epidermal growth factor receptors(EGFR). The cross-communication between the two signaling pathways regulates several important physiological or pathological processes. However, the molecule mechanism underlying EGFR transactivation remains poorly understood. Here, we aim to study the GPCR-mediated EGFR transactivation process using the single-molecule fluorescence imaging and tracking approach.We found that although EGFR existed as monomers at the plasma membrane of resting cells, they became dimers and thus diffused slower following the activation of β2-adrenergic receptor(β2-AR) by isoproterenol(ISO). We further proved thatβ2-AR-mediated changes of EGFR in stoichiometry and dynamics were mediated by Src kinase. Thus, the observations obtained via the single-molecule imaging and tracking methods shed new insights into the molecular mechanism of EGFR transactivation at single molecule level.

Single-Molecular Imaging of Anticoagulation Factor I from Snake Venom by Atomic Force Microscopy

Anticoagulation factor I (ACF I) from the venom of Agki^strodon acutus is a binding protein to activated coagulation factor X (FXa) and possesses marked anticoagulant activity. Single ACF I molecule has been successfully imaged in air by tapping mode atomic force microscopy (AFM) with high resolution using glutaraldehyde as a coupling agent. The physical adsorption and covalent binding of ACF I onto the mica show very different surface topographies. The former exhibits the characteristic strand like structure with much less reproducibility, the latter displays a elliptic granular structure with better reproducibility, which suggests that the stability of ACF I molecules on the mica is enhanced by covalent bonding in the presence of glutaraldehyde. A small scale AFM amplitude mode image clearly shows that the covalently bonded ACF I molecule by glutaraldehyde has olive shape structure with an average size of 7 4 nm×3 6 nm×3 1 nm, which is very similar to the size determined from the crystal structure of ACF I.

Probing the interplay between chain diffusion and polymer crystal growth under nanoscale confinement： a study by single molecule fluorescence microscopy

Motions of single poly（c-caprolactone） （PCL） molecules during the formation of the dendrite crystals in ultrathin films are captured by single molecule fluorescence microscopy. The relationship of single molecule diffusion coefficient with the crystal growth rate, together with radius curvature, side-branch spacing of dendrite crystal and morphology are examined. The results support Mullins-Sekerka （MS） instability as the origin of lamellar branching induced by a diffusion field generated by a gradient of polymer segment density ahead of the crystal. Further analysis of the molecular trajectories has recognized different types of motions, depending on the distance to the crystal front： Fickian diffusion in regions far away from the crystal, sub-diffusion in regions adjacent to the crystal, and directed motion between these two regions. Anti-correlation of successive steps is discovered accompanying the sub-diffusion, providing a clear signature of macromolecule crowding at the crystal growth front. This anomalous diffusion process in polymer ultrathin films presents a new insight into the understanding of the retarded dynamics of interfacial mass transport towards the crystal front. It is considered to play a decisive role in controlling the crystal growth and evolution of crystal morphology.