Fluorescence lifetime distributions of 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene in phospholipid vesicles

The fluorescence emission properties of 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (DPH) in 1,2-dipalmitoyl-3-sn-phosphatidylcholine and 1,2-dimyristoyl-3-sn-phosphatidylcholine multilamellar vesicles have been measured by using multifrequency phase fluorometry. The fluorescence decay of DPH in the phospholipid vesicles has been analyzed by assuming either that the decay is made up of a discrete sum of exponential components or that the decay is made up of one or more continuous distributions of lifetime components. The fit of the decay curve using exponentials required at least two terms, and the reduced X2 was relatively large. The fit using a continuous distribution of lifetime values used two continuous components. Several symmetric distribution functions were used: uniform, Gaussian, and Lorentzian. The distribution function that best described the decay was the Lorentzian. The full width at half-maximum of the Lorentzian distribution was about 0.6 ns at temperatures below the phase transition temperature. At the phospholipid phase transition and at higher temperatures, the distribution became quite narrow, with a width of about 0.1 ns. It is proposed that the lifetime distribution is generated by a continuum of different environments of the DPH molecule characterized by different dielectric constants. Below the transition temperature in the gel phase, the dielectric constant gradient along the membrane normal determines the distribution of decay rates. Above the transition, in the liquid-crystalline phase, the translational and rotational mobility of the DPH molecule increases, and the DPH experiences an average environment during the excited-state lifetime. Consequently, the distribution becomes narrower.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Steady-state fluorescence anisotropy and multifrequency phase fluorometry on oxidized phosphatidylcholine vesicles

Multilamellar liposomes, from mixtures of unoxidized (control) and singlet oxygen oxidized phosphatidylcholine, were studied by steady-state fluorescence anisotropy and multifrequency phase fluorometry using 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (DPH) as fluorescent probe. Lifetime fluorescence decay of the DPH-labeled liposomes was analyzed either by a model of discrete exponential components and a model that assumes a continuous distribution of lifetime values. Increasing the oxidized phosphatidylcholine content in the liposomes, an increase of the membrane interior polarity and a decrease of membrane fluidity occurs which can be related to the hydroperoxide-lipids and double bonds conjugation, respectively.     

Resolvability of fluorescence lifetime distributions using phase fluorometry.

The analysis of the fluorescence decay using discrete exponential components assumes that a small number of species is present. In the absence of a definite kinetic model or when a large number of species is present, the exponential analysis underestimates the uncertainty of the recovered lifetime values. A different approach to determine the lifetime of a population of molecules is the use of probability density functions and lifetime distributions. Fluorescence decay data from continuous distributions of exponentially decaying components were generated. Different magnitudes of error were added to the data to simulate experimental conditions. The resolvability of the distributional model was studied by fitting the simulated data to one and two exponentials. The maximum width of symmetric distributions (uniform, gaussian, and lorentzian), which cannot be distinguished from single and double exponential fits for statistical errors of 1 and 0.1%, were determined. The width limits are determined by the statistical error of the data. It is also shown that, in the frequency domain, the discrete exponential analysis does not uniformly weights all the components of a distribution. This systematic error is less important when probability and distribution functions are used to recover the decay. Finally, it is shown that real lifetime distributions can be proved using multimodal probability density functions. In the companion paper that follows we propose a physical approach, which provides lifetime distribution functions for the tryptophan decay in proteins. In the third companion paper (Alcala, J.R., E. Gratton, and F.J. Prendergast, 1987, Biophys. J., in press) we use the distribution functions obtained to fit data from the fluorescence decay of single tryptophan proteins.     

Alterations in Membrane Lipid Dynamics of Leukemic Cells Undergoing Growth Arrest and Differentiation: Dependency on the Inducing Agent

The effect of various differentiation inducers on membrane cell dynamics was studied using HL-60 and K562 leukemic cell lines. Membrane lipid dynamics was measured by the steady-state fluorescence polarization (P) method utilizing either 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (DPH) or the trimethyl ammonium derivative of DPH (TMA-DPH), which ascertains anchorage of the label to the membrane–water–lipid interface. Decrease in membrane microfluidity was observed in HL-60 cells undergoing differentiation into macrophages by 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃and by K562 cells induced to differentiate by DMSO. Sodium butyrate caused an increase in membrane fluidity in K562 cells undergoing differentiation into erythroid-like cells while in HL-60 cells a dual effect was observed. At 0.4 mM concentration, in which the cells were induced to differentiate along the monocyte pathway, a decrease in membrane fluidity was observed, while at 1 mM concentration an increase in membrane fluidity occurred. Interferon-γ (IFN-γ) induced an increase in membrane fluidity in both cell lines. Using HL-60 cells fluorescently labeled by TMA-DPH, similar results indicating fluidization of the membrane following IFN-γ treatment were obtained. Advanced fluorescence lifetime measurements, evaluated either by phase modulation spectrofluorometry or by single photon correlation fluorometry confirmed that the decrease in fluorescence polarization by IFN-γ resulted from membrane fluidization and not from elongation of the probe's excited state lifetime. It is suggested that the inducer mode of action, and not the differentiation route, determine the outcome of changes in membrane microviscosity.     

Phosphatidic acid affects structural organization of phosphatidylcholine liposomes. A study of 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (DPH) and 1-(4-trimethylammonium-phenyl)-6-phenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (TMA-DPH) fluorescence decay using distributional analysis

The fluorescence decay of 1-(4-trimethylammonium-phenyl)-6-phenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (TMA-DPH) was used to study micro-heterogeneity of 1,2-dimyristoyl-3-sn-phosphatidylcholine (DMPC) liposomes and to characterize the effect of phosphatidic acid on the correlation between fluorescence microheterogeneity and membrane permeability. The fluorescence decay, measured using multifrequency phase fluorometry, has been analyzed either by using a model of discrete exponential components or a model of continuous distribution of lifetime values. Both analyses have shown that TMA-DPH decay is characterized by two components: a long one of about 9 ns and a short one of about 5 ns. In the gel phase, at variance with previous DPH studies, the short component was associated with a large fractional intensity. The distributional analysis showed changes of lifetime values and width in correspondence to the calorimetric transitions. The presence of egg phosphatidic acid increased both long lifetime values and distributional width. The use of TMA-DPH as a probe to evaluate membrane heterogeneity using the distributional width is discussed. The effect of phosphatidic acid on the membrane surface and in the hydrophobic core has been related to its structural properties and to its role in water penetration.     

A photophysical model for diphenylhexatriene fluorescence decay in solvents and in phospholipid vesicles.

The fluorescence decay of 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (DPH) in pure solvents and in phospholipid vesicles has been measured using frequency domain fluorometry. Data analysis uses a model with two energetically close excited states. The model explains the high quantum yield and the double exponential decay of DPH observed in some pure solvents and in phospholipid vesicles. This model assumes that after excitation to a first excited state, there is a rapid interconversion to a lower excited state and that most of the emission occurs from this state. The interconversion rates between the two excited states determine the average lifetime. For DPH in solvents, we find that the interconversion rates are solvent and temperature dependent. For DPH in phospholipid vesicles, we find that the back reaction rate from excited state 2 to excited state 1 (R12) is what determines the fluorescence properties. The phospholipid phase transition affects only this back reaction rate. The model was analyzed globally for a range of solvents, temperatures and vesicle composition. Of the six parameters of the model, only two, the interconversion rates between the two excited states, varied in all different samples examined. For DPH in phospholipid vesicles, there is an additional feature of the model, which is related to the apparent distribution of the rate R12. Significantly better fits were obtained using a continuous lorentzian distribution of interconversion rates. The resulting lifetime distribution was asymmetric and showed a definite narrowing above the phase transition.     

Gangliosides asymmetrically alter the membrane order in cultured PC-12 cells

Exogenous gangliosides readily associate with the cell membranes and produce marked effects on cell growth and differentiation. We have studied the effect of bovine brain gangliosides (BBG) on the membrane dynamics of intact cells. The structural and dynamic changes in the cell membrane were monitored by the fluorescence probes DPH, TMA-DPH and laurdan. Incorporation of BBG into the cell membrane decreased the fluorescence intensity, lifetime and the steady state anisotropy of TMA-DPH. Analysis of the time resolved anisotropy decay by wobbling in the cone model revealed that BBG decreased the order parameter, and increased the cone angle without altering the rotational relaxation rate. The fluorescence intensity and lifetime of DPH were unaffected by BBG incorporation, however, a modest increase was observed in the steady state anisotropy. BBG incorporation reduced the total fluorescence intensity of laurdan with pronounced quenching of the 440-nm band. The wavelength sensitivity of generalized polarization of laurdan manifested an ordered liquid crystalline environment of the probe in the cell membrane. BBG incorporation reduced the GP values and augmented the liquid crystalline behavior of the cell membrane. BBG incorporation also influenced the permeability of cell membranes to cations. An influx of Na+ and Ca2+ and an efflux of K+ was observed. The data demonstrate that incorporation of gangliosides into the cell membrane substantially enhances the disorder and hydration of the lipid bilayer region near the exoplasmic surface. The inner core region near the center of the bilayer becomes slightly more ordered and remains highly hydrophobic. Such changes in the structure and dynamics of the membrane could play an important role in modulation of transmembrane signaling events by the gangliosides.     

Membrane structural domains. Resolution limits using diphenylhexatriene fluorescence decay.

Measurement of multiple fluorescence decay times of 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (DPH) in membranes can in principle be used to investigate structural domains of lipid bilayers. To assess the feasibility of this approach using phase and modulation techniques, we reduced experimental errors specifically associated with performing these measurements on membrane suspensions (probe self-quenching, background fluorescence, turbidity-induced artifacts) and determined empirically the level of precision thereby obtainable. Next we used these precision limits in theoretical calculations to conclude that the ratio of two coexisting decay times must exceed 1.3 if they are to be resolved with reliable accuracy. To demonstrate that such resolutions could be accomplished experimentally in membrane suspensions, three approaches were taken. First, the fluorescence decay of aqueous quinine sulfate quenched by chloride ion was resolved from that of membrane-associated DPH as long as the lifetime ratios of these two fluorophores exceeded the predicted value. Second, populations of DPH-containing lipid vesicles with single (or nearly single) decay times were mixed together, and when there were only two major lifetime components that differed by more than 30%, the resulting heterogeneous fluorescence could be resolved into the two expected lifetime components. Finally, DPH fluorescence decay measurements were correlated with phase behavior in well-characterized lipid systems, revealing a short lifetime component of DPH fluorescence associated with gel-phase lipid vesicles. From these studies, we conclude that only in special cases can co-existing gel and fluid phases be resolved by means of DPH lifetime heterogeneity, within the limits of precision defined herein.     

Disialoganglioside GD3 synthase expression recruits membrane transglutaminase 2 during erythroid differentiation of the human chronic myelogenous leukemia K562 cells

By employing proteomics analysis tool, we examined the effects of GD3 synthase expression on the differentiation properties of chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML)-derived leukemia cells K562. Forced expression of GD3 synthase induced erythroid differentiation as determined by an increase in glycophorin A expression and synthesis of hemoglobins. The proteomic analysis revealed that 15 proteins were increased by GD3 synthase. In contrast, we observed three protein gel spots decreased in contents in the cell membranes of GD3 synthase-transfected K562 cells. Among the increased proteins, membrane transglutaminase 2 (TG2) was specifically increased in the cell membrane of GD3 synthase-transfected K562 cells. Then, we generated the GD3 synthase-transfected cells in the K562 cells. Interestingly, the TG2 level was increased in GD3 synthase-transfected cells compared with vector- and plasma membrane-associated ganglioside sialidase (Neu3)-transfected cells. In addition, its ability to be photoaffinity-labeled with [alpha-(32)P]GTP was also increased in the GD3 synthase- and TG2-transfected cells. Moreover, small interfering RNA (siRNA) analysis for the GD3 synthase showed the decrease or abolishment of the membrane TG2. Finally, GD3 synthase-transfected cells accelerated the erythroid differentiation. Therefore, we propose that the recruitment of TG2 into membranes by GD3 might play an important role in the erythroid differentiation in K562 cells.     

Analysis of cell membrane micro-heterogeneity using the fluorescence lifetime of DPH-type fluorophores.

Heterogeneity in the lipid organization in lipid bilayers and cell membranes was probed by using the fluorescence decay of 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (DPH) and DPH attached to the sn-2 position of phosphatidylcholine (DPH-PC). In the presence of protein, it is proposed that the bulk lipids and boundary lipids can potentially provide distinct enough fluorophore environments for two different lifetime centers to be recovered from the analysis of the fluorescence decay. To test this model experiments were performed with cytochrome b5 in 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoylphosphatidylcholine bilayers. The number of boundary lipids of cytochrome b5 is known from the literature or can be calculated from known dimensions, so that for a known protein:lipid ratio the fraction of lipids in the bulk and boundary lipid regions is known. These values were found to closely correspond to the fractions associated with the lifetime centers recovered from an analysis of the fluorescence decay assuming two major fluorophore populations. This indicated that the DPH distributed in a similar manner to the lipids and that its boundary lipid residency time was greater than the excited state lifetime, showing the validity of the approach. An important requirement was that the protein should influence the fluorophore decay sufficiently enough to enable separate lifetime centers for the bulk and boundary lipid fluorophores to be recovered by the analysis. Attempts were made to analyze the fluorescence decay of DPH in liver plasma membranes and microsomes as arising from two distinct fluorophore populations, however, the basic condition was not satisfied. By contrast, using DPH-PC it was possible to extract two separate lifetime centers. The limitations and potential of this approach are critically assessed and it is concluded that in certain circumstances information pertaining to the protein-lipid interfacial region of membranes can be extracted from fluorescence decay heterogeneity properties.     

Regulation of c-myc mRNA decay in vitro by a phorbol ester-inducible, ribosome-associated component in differentiating megakaryoblasts

The K562 leukemia cell line is bipotential for erythroid and megakaryoblastic differentiation. The phorbol ester 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) activates a genetic program of gene expression in these cells leading to their differentiation into megakaryoblasts, a platelet precursor. Thus, K562 cells offer a means to examine early changes in gene expression necessary for megakaryoblastic commitment and differentiation. An essential requirement for differentiation of many hematopoietic cell types is the down-regulation of c-myc expression, because its constitutive expression blocks differentiation. TPA-induced differentiation of K562 cells causes rapid down-regulation of c-myc expression, due in part to an mRNA decay rate that is 4-fold faster compared with dividing cells. A cell-free mRNA decay system reconstitutes TPA-induced destabilization of c-myc mRNA, but it requires at least two components for reconstitution. One component fractionates to the post-ribosomal supernatant from either untreated or treated cells. This component is sensitive to cycloheximide and micrococcal nuclease. The other component is polysome-associated and is induced or activated by TPA. Although in dividing cells c-myc mRNA decays via a sequential pathway involving removal of the poly(A) tract followed by degradation of the mRNA body, TPA activates a deadenylation-independent pathway. The cell-free mRNA decay system reconstitutes this alternate decay pathway as well.     

Abscisic acid-induced microheterogeneity in phospholipid vesicle: a fluorescence study

Changes in the thermal behavior of DMPC (dimyristoyl-L-phosphatidylcholine) and an equimolar mixture of DMPC and DMPE (dimyristoyl-L-phosphatidylethanolamine) induced by the plant hormone abscisic acid (ABA) have been investigated using fluorescent probes. The fluorescence decay of the hydrophobic probe 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (DPH) in these vesicles has been measured using frequency-domain fluorometry, and has been analyzed using both models of discrete exponential components and continuous lifetime distributions. In the DMPC vesicles, using the distributional approach, higher center and width values were observed in the presence of abscisic acid (ABA), indicating a decrease in the dielectric constant of the lipid phase that we attribute to a decrease in the water concentration within the bilayer. Moreover, the presence of ABA in the liposomes increased the phospholipid phase transition temperature. The addition of ABA to the DMPC/DMPE mixture strongly increased the microheterogeneity of the system as reported by the FWHM (full-width at half-maximum) of the distributional approach.     

Application of the stretched exponential function to fluorescence lifetime imaging

Conventional analyses of fluorescence lifetime measurements resolve the fluorescence decay profile in terms of discrete exponential components with distinct lifetimes. In complex, heterogeneous biological samples such as tissue, multi-exponential decay functions can appear to provide a better fit to fluorescence decay data than the assumption of a mono-exponential decay, but the assumption of multiple discrete components is essentially arbitrary and is often erroneous. Moreover, interactions, both between fluorophores and with their environment, can result in complex fluorescence decay profiles that represent a continuous distribution of lifetimes. Such continuous distributions have been reported for tryptophan, which is one of the main fluorophores in tissue. This situation is better represented by the stretched-exponential function (StrEF). In this work, we have applied, for the first time to our knowledge, the StrEF to time-domain whole-field fluorescence lifetime imaging (FLIM), yielding both excellent tissue contrast and goodness of fit using data from rat tissue. We note that for many biological samples for which there is no a priori knowledge of multiple discrete exponential fluorescence decay profiles, the StrEF is likely to provide a truer representation of the underlying fluorescence dynamics. Furthermore, fitting to a StrEF significantly decreases the required processing time, compared with a multi-exponential component fit and typically provides improved contrast and signal/noise in the resulting FLIM images. In addition, the stretched-exponential decay model can provide a direct measure of the heterogeneity of the sample, and the resulting heterogeneity map can reveal subtle tissue differences that other models fail to show.     

氯化高铁血红素诱导K562细胞红系分化对其细胞周期的影响

细胞周期的测量是细胞增殖动力学的研究基础。通过添加30μmol·L-1氯化高铁血红素(Hemin)诱导人慢性髓系白血病K562细胞红系分化,利用5-溴脱氧尿嘧啶核苷(BrdU)与7-AAD双染的方法检测Hemin诱导的K562红系分化细胞对细胞周期各期比例的影响,未诱导的K562细胞周期各期比例作为对照,检测发现Hemin诱导的K562红系分化细胞对其细胞周期相对值无明显影响。应用BrdU间隔染色结合流式细胞术的方法,通过分析BrdU间隔染色后BrdU阳性细胞群的动态变化规律,从而推算出K562红系分化细胞的倍增时间及细胞周期各期时长。根据测量结果发现,未诱导的K562细胞总倍增时间约为20 h,与通过生长曲线公式法计算倍增时间的结果相符,Hemin诱导的K562细胞的细胞周期倍增时长约为23 h。Hemin诱导的K562红系分化细胞较未诱导的K562细胞倍增时间与各期时长无明显差异。因此,Hemin诱导K562细胞红系分化对其细胞周期绝对值及相对值均无明显影响。     

Human leukemic K562 cells: differential effects of 5-azacytidine on DNA methylation of epsilon-, gamma-globin and 7SL RNA genes

5 Azacytidine ribonucleoside (5 Aza CR), greatly enhances erythroid differentiation of the K562(h) cell line, with a sharp increase of embryonic and fetal globin gene expression. This phenomenon is correlated with the undermethylation of gamma-globin but not of epsilon-globin, as the epsilon-globin gene is already extensively undermethylated before 5AzaCR induction. By contrast no variations in both DNA methylation and expression are observed in 7SL RNA genes.     

利用K562红细胞分化模型和cDNA芯片技术筛选参与红细胞分化的新基因(英文)

以氯高铁血红素 (hemin)诱导K5 6 2分化作为体外红细胞分化模型 ,结合cDNA大规模测序、生物信息学分析、基因芯片杂交和NorthernBlot分析等技术 ,筛选红细胞分化相关的新基因 .首先利用大规模测序技术从人胚肾cDNA文库中随机挑选克隆测得 192个EST(expressedsequencetags)片段 ,经在线生物信息学分析 ,得到 79个代表新基因的未知EST片段 ,并在NCBI(NationalCenterofBiotechnologyInformation)dbEST库中登录 .利用 79个ESTcDNA片段制备了基因芯片 .提取分化前后的K5 6 2细胞的mRNA作为荧光标记反转录的模板 ,反转录后的探针用于DNA芯片杂交 .分析杂交后的结果 ,得到了 2个差异表达较明显的基因 ,GenBank登录号分别为AF147772 (187bp)和AF4 776 2(6 30bp) ,并分别命名为EDRG1和EDRG2 (erythroiddifferentiationrelatedgene 1and 2 ) ,相似性检索表明它们属全新基因 ,基因组草图测序数据库检索表明了两个基因的染色体定位 .随后的Northern印迹用于验证了在分化前后的K5 6 2细胞中差异表达 .提示这两个基因参与了红细胞分化过程 .RT PCR检测了EDRG1和EDRG2在人胚胎多组织中的表达 .结果提示 ,EDRG1可能与多种胚组织的正常发育相关 ,尤其在胚脑中高丰度表达 ,而EDRG2则可能参与了胚心和胚肾的组织生成 .生物     

Role of ERK activation in growth and erythroid differentiation of K562 cells

Inhibition of signaling through Ras in BCR-ABL-positive pluripotent K562 cells leads to apoptosis and spontaneous differentiation. However, Ras-induced activation of the mitogen-activated protein kinase ERK has been suggested to play a critical role in either growth or differentiation in different model systems. We studied the role of ERK activation in the growth-promoting and anti-apoptotic effect of Ras and its involvement in hemin-induced nonterminal erythroid differentiation using the BCR-ABL-positive K562 cell line as a model. K562 cells were stably transfected with ERK1 or the dominant inhibitory mutant of ERK1 (ERK1-KR). Overexpression of ERK1-KR inhibited cell growth with an approximately fourfold increase in doubling time and induced apoptosis in K562 cells. Incubation with the MEK1 inhibitor UO126 inhibited cell growth and induced apoptosis in K562 cells in a dose-dependent manner as well. In the presence of exogenously added hemin, K562 cells differentiate into erythroblasts, as indicated by the production of large amounts of fetal hemoglobin. We examined the activation of MAP kinases during hemin-induced differentiation. The ERK1 and 2 activity increased within 2 h post hemin treatment and remained elevated for 24-48 h. During this time, fetal hemoglobin synthesis also increases from 0.8 to 10 pg/cell. There was no activation of JNK or p38 protein kinases. The hemin-induced accumulation of hemoglobin was inhibited in ERK1-KR overexpressing cells and was enhanced in the wild-type ERK1 transfectants. Our results suggest that ERK activation is involved in both growth and hemin-induced erythroid differentiation in the BCR-ABL-positive K562 cell line.