Development of far-red absorbing fluorescent probes and photoconvertible switches for organ-level bio-imaging and optogenetics

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26702036
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (A)
• Allocation Type: Partial Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Chemical biology
• Research Institution: Shizuoka University
• Principal Investigator: Narikawa Rei 静岡大学, 理学部, 講師 (30456181)
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: オプトジェネティクス / 遠赤色光 / cAMP / シアノバクテリオクロム

Outline of Final Research Achievements

In this project, we focused on cyanobacterial photoreceptors, cyanobacteriochromes (CBCRs), to develop small photo-switches and fluorescent probes that bind biliverdin (BV) and absorb far-red light. Because BV is an intrinsic chromophore in mammalian cells and far-red light can penetrate into deep animal tissues, BV-binding ones are beneficial for optogenetics and bio-imaging tools. We succeeded in discovering novel BV-binding CBCRs showing far-red/orange reversible photoconversion and in developing BV-binding CBCRs based on non-BV-binding ones to introduce several mutations. Further, we also identified dark-reversion type CBCRs and a CBCR with large spectral shift. Based on these molecules, we succeeded in light regulation of cAMP synthesis in vitro and far-red fluorescence detection from mammalian cells.

Free Research Field

光生物学