A photo-convertible protein is found in several species of the coral genus Lobophyllia. Its green fluorescence is
converted to red by irradiation in the 340-400nm range. It also exhibits a wider range of photo-reactive properties,
including a reversible photo-bleaching when in a partially-converted state. We present data on its behaviour under
single and multiphoton irradiation.
A variety of fluorescent and chromophoric proteins homologous to the green fluorescent protein (GFP) has been recently discovered and cloned from non-bioluminescent marine animals, such as corals, and now provide a multitude of colors for use in fluorescence imaging applications. Recently, a novel fluorescence imaging methodology has emerged that utilizes the unique photoactivatory property of several GFP-like proteins, which respond to irradiation by altering their optical properties, thereby providing a new spatio-temporal capability to the GFP-based imaging applications. During our studies of GFP-like proteins from the Great Barrier Reef corals, several novel photoactivatable (PA) GFP-like proteins have been discovered. These include fluorescence photo-amplifiers and reversible photoswitchers, similar to PA jelly-fish derived PA-GFP and Dronpa, that greatly increase their emissions following ultraviolet-A (UVA) irradiation; the red-to-green (R-to-G) converters, similar to DsRed, that rapidly change to green color following single- or 2-photon irradiation; the green-to-red (G-to-R) converters, that acquire bright red fluorescence following UV-violet irradiation, similar to Kaede-like proteins; and the kindling GFP-like proteins, that are non fluorescent, but rapidly acquire bright fluorescence after green light irradiation. We report on the various optical characteristics of these coral PA proteins that may be used to expand the scope of the available fluorescence bio-imaging technologies.
Reef-building corals are dependent on dinoflagellate algal symbionts (zooxanthellae). Within the range of habitats of any one coral species there can be huge variations in light intensities, so there is a risk of photoinhibition from excess light. In extremes of light and heat, senescent algae are expelled en masse, a phenomenon known as coral bleaching. In freshly isolated tissue the chlorophyll fluorescence has a lifetime of ~1.1ns. 6 hours and 15 hours after isolation the zooxanthellae looked visually healthy, but the lifetimes had increased to 2ns after 6 hours and 2.2ns after 15 hours. Zooxanthellae which were visibly damaged or necrotic had a mean lifetime of 3ns. Lifetime of chlorophyll fluorescence is thus a sensitive indicator, revealing effects in cell metabolism before any structural changes are evident. The occurrence of FRET between fluorescent proteins in corals has already been reported and time-resolved spectra have shown the effect on fluorescent lifetime, but without any spatial resolution. Lifetime confocal microscopy offers lower time resolution but excellent spatial resolution. Lifetimes of the isolated A. millepora pigments amilFP490, amilFP504 and amilFP593 (names indicate emission peaks) were 2.8ns, 2.9ns and 2.9ns respectively. In the coral sample, imaging the entire emission spectrum from 420nm, the mean lifetime was reduced to 1.5ns, implying that FRET was occurring. Looking just at the fluorescence from FRET donors the lifetime was even shorter, at 1.3ns, supporting this interpretation.
In recent years, a variety of Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP)-like pigments have been discovered from corals and other marine organisms. They are widely used to expand the range of available GFP-type proteins in imaging applications, such as in vivo markers for gene expression and protein localization studies, FRET-based (Förster resonance energy transfer) multicolor imaging and biosensors. They have known diverse optical and biochemical properties but their in vivo spectral properties and biological function in marine organisms is only beginning to be understood. We have investigated their spectral diversity, optical properties and cellular microstructure in corals of the Great Barrier Reef with the aim of elucidating their photo-biological function/s as well as to identify novel proteins suitable for GFP-based technologies. We found numerous spectral variants, with emissions covering almost the full range of the visible spectrum. Many of these GFP-like proteins, especially in corals from the more extreme habitats, such as sun-exposed shallows or in deep water, showed a range of light-related spectral characteristics: high photostability, spectral tuning for energy transfer and dynamic photo-induced transformation properties. Intra-cellularly they were organized into spectral donor-acceptor pairs or even arrays, tuned for FRET. Coral color proteins thus offer an exciting potential to expand the use of the available GFPs in bio-imaging applications and as a basis for improved protein engineering.
Tissues of many marine invertebrates of class Anthozoa contain intensely fluorescent or brightly colored pigments. These pigments belong to a family of photoactive proteins closely related to Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP), and their emissions range from blue to red wavelengths. The great diversity of these pigments has only recently been realized. To investigate the role of these proteins in corals, we have performed an in vivo fluorescent pigment (FP) spectral and cellular distribution analyses in live coral cells using single and multi-photon laser scanning imaging and microspectroscopy. These analyses revealed that even single color corals contain spectroscopically heterogeneous pigment mixtures, with 2-5 major color types in the same area of tissue. They were typically arranged in step-wise light emission energy gradients (e.g. blue, green, yellow, red). The successive overlapping emission-excitation spectral profiles of differently colored FPs suggested that they were suited for sequential energy coupling. Traces of red FPs (emission = 570-660 nm) were present, even in non-red corals. We confirmed that radiative energy transfer could occur between separate granules of blue and green FPs and that energy transfer was inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them. Multi-photon micro-spectrofluorometric analysis gave significantly improved spectral resolution by restricting FP excitation to a single point in the focal plane of the sample. Pigment heterogeneity at small scales within granules suggested that fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) might be occurring, and we confirmed that this was the case. Thus, energy transfer can take place both radiatively and by FRET, probably functioning in photoprotection by dissipation of excessive solar radiation.
Conference Committee Involvement (2)
Small Animal Whole-Body Optical Imaging Based on Genetically Engineered Probes
23 January 2007 | San Jose, California, United States
Genetically Engineered Probes for Biomedical Applications
24 January 2006 | San Jose, California, United States
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