Evidence for the isomerization and decarboxylation in the photoconversion of the red fluorescent protein DsRed

Recently, it has been shown that the red fluorescent protein DsRed undergoes photoconversion on intense irradiation, but the mechanism of the conversion has not yet been elucidated. Upon irradiation with a nanosecond-pulsed laser at 532 nm, the chromophore of DsRed absorbing at 559 nm and emitting at 583 nm (R form) converts into a super red (SR) form absorbing at 574 nm and emitting at 595 nm. This conversion leads to a significant change in the fluorescence quantum yield from 0.7 to 0.01. Here we demonstrate that the photoconversion is the result of structural changes of the chromophore and one amino acid. Absorption, fluorescence, and vibrational spectroscopy as well as mass spectrometry suggest that a cis-to-trans isomerization of the chromophore and decarboxylation of a glutamate (E215) take place upon irradiation to form SR. At the same time, another photoproduct (B) with an absorption maximum at 386 nm appears upon irradiation. This species is assigned as a protonated form of the DsRed chromophore. It might be a mixture of several protonated DsRed forms as there is at least two ways of formation. Furthermore, the photoconversion of DsRed is proven to occur through a consecutive two-photon absorption process. Our results demonstrate the importance of the chromophore conformation in the ground state on the brightness of the protein as well as the importance of the photon flux to control/avoid the photoconversion process.     

A new class of laser dyes, 2-oxa-bicyclo[3.3.0]octa-4,8-diene-3,6-diones, with unity fluorescence yield

A new class of highly fluorescent dyes, 4,8-diphenyl-2-oxa-bicyclo[3.3.0]octa-4,8-diene-3,6-diones (1a-c), have been synthesized, they all exhibit unity fluorescence quantum yield and short radiative lifetime (< 4 ns) in common organic solvents and have demonstrated remarkable amplified spontaneous emission with a gain efficiency of > 10.     

Spectral and photophysical properties of 1,6-naphthyridine derivatives: a new class of compounds for nonlinear optics

1,6-Naphthyridines are a class of compounds that exhibit second harmonic generation on excitation with a Nd-YAG laser (1064 nm). Solvatochromism has been used to estimate enhancement in the dipole moments on excitation and the values of first-order hyperpolarizability, beta. Photophysical studies on the title compounds show that they have a fluorescence lifetime of about 10 ns and fluorescence quantum yield of approximately 0.05-0.1 in different solvents. Kurtz powder method has been used to find the NLO efficiency of the compounds with reference to urea.     

Probing redox proteins on a gold surface by single molecule fluorescence spectroscopy

The interaction between the fluorescently labeled redox protein, azurin, and a thin gold film is characterized using single-molecule fluorescence intensity and lifetime measurements. Fluorescence quenching starts at distances below 2.3 nm from the gold surface. At shorter distances the quantum yield may decrease down to fourfold for direct attachment of the protein to bare gold. Outside of the quenching range, up to fivefold enhancement of the fluorescence is observed on average with increasing roughness of the gold layer. Fluorescence-detected redox activity of individual azurin molecules, with a lifetime switching ratio of 0.4, is demonstrated for the first time close to a gold surface.     

Circumvention of fluorophore photobleaching in fluorescence fluctuation experiments: a beam scanning approach.

Photobleaching is a fluorophore-damaging process that commonly afflicts single-molecule fluorescence studies. It becomes an especially severe problem in fluorescence fluctuation experiments when studying slowly diffusing particles. One way to circumvent this problem is to use beam scanning to decrease the residence time of the fluorophores in the excitation volume. We report a systematic study of the effects of circular beam scanning on the photobleaching of fluorescent particles as observed in single-photon excitation fluorescence fluctuation experiments. We start by deriving a simple expression relating the average detected fluorescence to the photobleaching cross section of the fluorophores. We then perform numerical calculations of the spatial distribution of fluorescent particles in order to understand under which conditions beam scanning can prevent the formation of a photobleaching hole. To support these predictions, we show experimental results obtained for large unilamellar vesicles containing a small amount of the fluorescent lipophilic tracer DiD. We establish the required scanning radius and frequency range in order to obtain sufficient reduction of the photobleaching effect for that system. From the detected increase in fluorescence upon increase in scanning speed, we estimate the photobleaching cross section of DiD.     

Photophysical behavior of a dimeric cyanine dye (BOBO-1) within cationic liposomes

This study is aimed at establishing optimal conditions for the use of 2,2'-[1,3-propanediylbis[(dimethyliminio)-3,1-propanediyl-1(4H)-pyridinyl-4-ylidenemethy-lidyne]]bis[3-methyl]-tetraiodide (BOBO-1) as a fluorescent probe in the characterization of lipid/DNA complexes (lipoplexes). The fluorescence spectra, anisotropy, fluorescence lifetimes and fluorescence quantum yields of this dimeric cyanine dye in plasmid DNA (2694 base pairs) with and without cationic liposomes (1,2-dioleoyl-3-trimethylammonium-propane [DOTAP]), are reported. The photophysical behavior of the dye in the absence of lipid was studied for several dye/DNA ratios using both supercoiled and relaxed plasmid. At dye/DNA ratios (d/b) below 0.01 the fluorescence intensity increases linearly, whereas lifetime and anisotropy values of the dye are constant (tau approximately 2.5 ns and = 0.20). By agarose gel electrophoresis it was verified that up to d/b = 0.01 DNA conformation is not considerably modified, whereas for d/b = 0.05-0.06 a single heavy band appears on the gel. For these and higher dye/DNA ratios the fluorescence intensity, anisotropy and average lifetime values decrease with an increase in BOBO-1 concentration. When cationic liposomes are added to the BOBO-1/DNA complex, an additional effect is noticed: The difference in the environment probed by BOBO-1 bound to DNA leads to a decrease in quantum yield and average lifetime values, and a redshift is apparent in the emission spectrum. For fluorescence measurements including energy transfer (FRET), a d/b ratio of 0.01 seems to be adequate because no considerable change on DNA conformation is detected, a considerable fluorescent signal is still measured after lipoplex formation, and energy migration is not efficient.     

The two-photon excitation cross section of 6MAP, a fluorescent adenine analogue

6MAP is a fluorescent analogue of adenine that undergoes Watson-Crick base pairing and base stacking in double-stranded DNA. The one-photon absorption spectrum of 6MAP is characterized by a maximum around 330 nm with moderate quantum yield fluorescence centered at about 420 nm. To take advantage of this probe for confocal and single-molecule microscopy, it would be advantageous to be able to excite the analogue via two photons. We report the first determination of the two-photon excitation cross section and spectrum for 6MAP from 614 to 700 nm. The power dependence of the fluorescence indicates that emission results from the absorption of two photons. The one-photon and two-photon emission line shapes are identical within experimental error. A study of the concentration dependence of the fluorescence yield for one-photon excitation shows no measurable quenching up to about 5 microM. The maximum in the two-photon excitation spectrum gives a two-photon cross section, delta(TPE), of 3.4 +/- 0.1 Goeppert-Mayer (G.M.) at 659 nm, which correlates well with the one-photon absorption maximum. This compares quite favorably with cross sections of various naturally fluorescent biological molecules such as flavins and nicotiamide. In addition, we have also obtained the two-photon-induced fluorescence emission spectrum of quinine sulfate. It is approximately the same as that for one-photon excitation, suggesting that two-photon excitation of quinine sulfate may be used for calibration purposes.     

Temperature-dependent fluorescence lifetime of a fluorescent polymeric thermometer, poly(N-isopropylacrylamide), labeled by polarity and hydrogen bonding sensitive 4-sulfamoyl-7-aminobenzofurazan

Fluorescent molecular thermometers showing temperature-dependent fluorescence lifetimes enable thermal mapping of small spaces such as a microchannel and a living cell. We report the temperature-dependent fluorescence lifetimes of poly(NIPAM-co-DBD-AA), which is a random copolymer of N-isopropylacrylamide (NIPAM) and an environment-sensitive fluorescent monomer (DBD-AA) containing a 4-sulfamoyl-7-aminobenzofurazan structure. The average fluorescence lifetime of poly(NIPAM-co-DBD-AA) in aqueous solution increased from 4.22 to 14.1 ns with increasing temperature from 30 to 35 degrees C. This drastic change in fluorescence lifetime (27% increase per 1 degrees C) is the sharpest ever reported. Concentration independency, one of the advantages of fluorescence lifetime measurements, was seen in average fluorescence lifetime (13.7 +/- 0.18 ns) of poly(NIPAM-co-DBD-AA) at 33 degrees C over a wide concentration range (0.005-1 w/v%). With increasing temperature, polyNIPAM units in poly(NIPAM-co-DBD-AA) change their structure from an extended form to a globular form, providing apolar and aprotic environments to the fluorescent DBD-AA units. Consequently, the environment-sensitive DBD-AA units translate the local environmental changes into the extension of the fluorescence lifetime. This role of the DBD-AA units was revealed by a study of solvent effects on fluorescence lifetime of a model environment-sensitive fluorophore.     

Fast and slow fluorescence emissions from pyrimidine vapor

The pressure and excitation-energy dependence of the fluorescence quantum yield and lifetime of pyrimidine vapor has been investigated in the pressure range 10^?3-10 torr. The results indicate that in conformity to the intermediate case the fluorescence of the isolated pyrimidine molecule consists of fast and slow components with lifetimes of the order of 1 ns and 10 μs, respectively. The total fluorescence quantum yield amounts to as high as 0.045. The yield of the slow fluorescence component decreases significantly with increasing excitation energy; this observation is interpreted as being due mainly to the lengthening of the radiative lifetime of that component.     

Picosecond multidimensional fluorescence spectroscopy: a tool to measure real-time protein dynamics during function

Advanced multidimensional time-correlated single photon counting (mdTCSPC) and picosecond time-resolved fluorescence in combination with site-directed fluorescence labeling are valuable tools to study the properties of membrane protein surface segments on the pico- to nanoseconds time scale. Time-resolved fluorescence anisotropy changes of protein bound fluorescent probes reveal changes in protein dynamics and steric restriction. In addition, the change in fluorescence lifetime and intensity of the covalently bound fluorescent dye is indicative of environmental changes at the protein surface. In this study, we have measured the changes in fluorescence lifetime traces of the fluorescent dye fluorescein covalently bound to the first cytoplasmic loop of bacteriorhodopsin (bR) after light activation of protein function. The fluorescence is excited by a picosecond laser pulse. The retinylidene chromophore of bR is light-activated by a 10 ns laser pulse, which in turn triggers recording of a sequence of fluorescence lifetime traces in the mdTCSPC-module. The fluorescence decay changes upon protein function occur predominantly in the 100 ps time range. The kinetics of these changes shows two transitions between three intermediate states in the second part of the bR photocycle. Correlation with photocycle kinetics allows for the determination of reaction intermediates at the proteins surface which are coupled to changes in the retinal binding pocket.     

PICOSECOND FLUORESCENCE KINETICS and ENERGY TRANSFER IN THE ANTENNA CHLOROPHYLLS OF GREEN ALGAE*

Single-photon timing measurements on flowing samples of Chlorella vulgaris and Chlamydomonas reinhardtii at low excitation intensities at room temperature indicate two main kinetic components of the fluorescence at open reaction centers (F₀) of photosystem II with lifetimes of approx. 130 and 500 ps and relative yields of about 30 and 70%. Closing the reaction centers progressively by preincubation of the algae with increasing concentrations of 3-(3′,4′-dichlorophenyl)-l,l-dimethylurea (DCMU) and hydroxylamine gave rise to a slow component with a lifetime increasing from 1.4 to 2.2 ns (F_max) The yield of the slow component increased to 65-68% of the total fluorescence yield in parallel to a decrease in the yield of the fast component to a value close to zero at the f_max-level. The 130 ps lifetime of the fast component remained unchanged. The middle component showed an increase of its lifetime from 500 to 1100 ps and of its yield by a factor of 1.5. Spacing of the ps laser pulses by 12 μs allowed us to resolve a new long-lived fluorescence component of very small amplitude which is ascribed to a small amount of chlorophyll not connected to functional antennae. The opposite dependence of the yield of the fast and the slow component on the state of the reaction centers at almost constant lifetimes is consistent with a mechanism of energy conversion in largely separately functioning photosystem II units. Yields and lifetimes of these two components are in agreement with the high quantum yield of photosynthesis. The lower lifetime limit of 1.4 ns of the slow component is assigned to the average transfer time of an excited state from a closed to a neighboring open reaction center and the increase in the lifetime to 2.2 ns is evidence for a limited energy transfer between photosystems II. Relative effects of changing the excitation wavelength from 630 to 652 nm on the relative fluorescence yields of the kinetic components were studied at the fluorescence wavelengths 682, 703 and 730 nm. Our data indicate that (i) the middle component has its fluorescence maximum at shorter wavelength than the fast component and (ii) that the antennae chlorophylls giving rise to the middle component are preferentially excited by 652 nm light. It is concluded that the middle component originates from the light-harvesting chlorophyll alb protein complexes and the major portion of the fast component from the chlorophyll a antennae of open photosystem II reaction centers.     

Stimulated fluorescence and fluorescence quenching in chlorophyll a and bacteriochlorophyll a

This communication deals with the photophysical processes that take place in chlorophyll solutions under intense nitrogen laser irradiation. The effect of the pump photon density on the fluorescence yield depends strongly on the geometry of the irradiation and the sampling set-up. If the fluorescence cell and sampling probe are placed close to the transverse arrangement used for obtaining laser output, line narrowing and gain, which are processes associated with high population inversions and stimulated fluorescence, are observed. A normal fluorescence spectrum and a decrease in fluorescence quantum yield with increasing pump power are observed in the fluorescence cells in oriented at an angle of 20–40° with respect to the transverse axis of the exciting beam. The decrease in quantum yield appears to result from absorption of the pump photons by the excited singlet of the chlorophylls, and it is suggested that an analogous mechanism may be responsible for the anomalous fluorescence quantum yield reported for in in vivo Chlorella vulgaris algae.     

THE PHOTOPHYSICS OF MEROCYANINE 540. A COMPARATIVE STUDY IN ETHANOL AND IN LIPOSOMES

Abstract— Absorption and fluorescence emission spectra, fluorescence lifetimes, fluorescence quantum yields, photoisomerization quantum yields and triplet quantum yields were measured for Merocyanine 540 (MC540) in ethanol and in large unilamellar dimyristoyl phosphatidylcholine vesicles. The major differences in the photophysics between the two media are the increase of the fluorescence quantum yield from 0.15 in ethanol to 0.6 in vesicles at 25° C, and the appearance of a second fluorescence decay with a lifetime of 1.87 ns in the latter medium. Upper and lower limits for the photoisomerization quantum yields were determined by combining the data from laser flash photolysis and optoacoustic spectroscopy. The decrease in photoisomerization quantum yield upon incorporation of the dye into the lipid bilayer by a factor 2 suggests that this process competes directly with fluorescence. The temperature dependence of the fluorescence and photoisomerization quantum yields in solution supports this model. In both media MC540 has a very low triplet quantum yield with values 0.002 > (> ø_T > 0.02 in ethanol and 0.01 > ø_T- > 0.09 in liposomes Our data are consistent with the model whereby the dye is incorporated into the lipid bilayer as a monomer with two different orientations and this model is adopted on the basis of the biexponential behaviour of the fluorescence and photoisomer decay.     

Analysis of Fluorescence Lifetime of Protochlorophyllide and Chlorophyllide in Isolated Etioplast Membranes Measured from Multifrequency Cross-correlation Phase Fluorometry

The fluorescence decays of protochlorophyllide (Pchlide) and of chlorophyllide (Chlide) in wheat etioplast membranes were analyzed using a multiexponential fluorescence decay model. Using different excitation wavelengths from 430 to 470 nm, we found that a triple-exponential model at 14°C and a double-exponential model at — 170°C were adequate to describe the Pchlide fluorescence decay. We discuss the origin of the three fluorescence lifetime components at 14°C on the basis of the dependence of their fractional intensities on the excitation wavelength and by correlating the fractional intensities with integrated fluorescence intensities of different Pchlide forms in steady-state fluorescence spectra. The fluorescence decay of the main Pchlide form, photoactive Pchlide-F657, is shown to have a complex character with a fast component of 0.25 ns and a slower component of about 2 ns. Two lifetime components of 2 ns and 5.5–6.0 ns are ascribed to the second photoactive form, Pchlide-F645, and to nonphotoactive Pchlide forms, respectively. In etioplast membranes preilluminated by a short saturating light pulse, we found a single 5.0 ns component for Chlide-F688 (the Chlide-NADPH: protochlorophyllide oxidoreductase [PORJ-NADP⁺complex) and an additional 1.6 ns component when the formation of Chlide-F696 (the Chlide-POR-NADPH complex) was promoted by exogenous NADPH. From the fluorescence lifetime results we evaluated the quantum yield of the primary photoreaction by Chlide-F696 as being 70%.     

双态发光三苯胺基有机硼配合物的设计、合成与应用

以三(4-溴苯)胺、4-氨基苯硼酸频哪醇酯、4-二乙氨基水杨醛和三氟化硼乙醚溶液为原料,经过Suzuki偶联反应、缩合反应和配位反应,设计、合成了一种新型三枝结构的三苯胺有机硼配合物(TPAB),使用 ¹H和 ¹³C NMR对 TPAB的结构进行了表征,通过紫外可见吸收光谱和荧光发射光谱详细研究了TPAB溶液和固体态的光物理性能以及不同的外部条件对其发光性能的影响。发现 TPAB溶液和固体态都具有较强的荧光发射,在四氢呋喃溶液中的吸收峰位于 417 nm,发射峰位于 548 nm,荧光量子产率为 40.49%,荧光寿命为 1.72 ns;TPAB 固体的荧光发射峰位于 582 nm,荧光量子产率为 11.43%,荧光寿命为 0.72ns,表明TPAB具有优良的双光发光性能。此外,TPAB具有良好的发光稳定性,不受pH、金属离子、氨基酸和压力的影响。基于化合物优异的发光性能,将其应用于荧光细胞成像,在肝癌细胞(HepG2)中表现出良好的单光子和双光子荧光成像效果。     

双态发光三苯胺基有机硼配合物的设计、合成与应用

以三(4-溴苯)胺、4-氨基苯硼酸频哪醇酯、4-二乙氨基水杨醛和三氟化硼乙醚溶液为原料,经过Suzuki偶联反应、缩合反应和配位反应,设计、合成了一种新型三枝结构的三苯胺有机硼配合物(TPAB),使用¹H和¹³C NMR对TPAB的结构进行了表征,通过紫外可见吸收光谱和荧光发射光谱详细研究了TPAB溶液和固体态的光物理性能以及不同的外部条件对其发光性能的影响。发现TPAB溶液和固体态都具有较强的荧光发射,在四氢呋喃溶液中的吸收峰位于417 nm,发射峰位于548 nm,荧光量子产率为40.49%,荧光寿命为1.72 ns; TPAB固体的荧光发射峰位于582 nm,荧光量子产率为11.43%,荧光寿命为0.72ns,表明TPAB具有优良的双态发光性能。此外,TPAB具有良好的发光稳定性,不受pH、金属离子、氨基酸和压力的影响。基于化合物优异的发光性能,将其应用于荧光细胞成像,在肝癌细胞(HepG2)中表现出良好的单光子和双光子荧光成像效果。     

THE PHOTOPHYSICS OF 5-METHOXYINDOLE. A NON-EXCIPLEX FORMING INDOLE: ADDITIONAL EVIDENCE FOR TWO CLASSES OF EXCIPLEXES*

Abstract— 5-Methoxyindole is a non-exciplex forming indole, and its excited state behavior is qualitatively different from that of indole and its methyl substituted derivatives. This fact supports the idea that there are two limiting classes of exciplexes, charge-transfer and dipole-dipole stabilized. The fluorescence quantum yield in water is 0.29 with a lifetime of 4.0 ns at 25d?C. The activation energy for fluorescence quenching in water is 15.9 pM 0.5 kJ/mol, which is smaller than for indole and the methyl substituted indoles which have been measured. In cyclohexane at 25d?C, the fluorescence quantum yield is 0.63 with a lifetime of 6.7 ns. The fluorescence is efficiently quenched by electron scavengers, as is the case for other indoles. Some electron ejection to solvent probably occurs in both solvents.     

A photochemical study of (E,E,E,E)-2-[9-(2-hydroxyethyl)imino-3,7-dimethyl-1,3,5,7-decatrien-1-yl]- 1,3,3-trimethylcyclohexene, a derivative of all-trans-retinal and ethanolamine

A derivative of all-trans-retinal (RAL) and ethanolamine, A2-E, is the main fluorescent component of human retinal lipofuscin. The accumulation of lipofuscin has been correlated with exposure to ambient radiation and loss of photoreceptors. A possible precursor to A2-E is the imine formed from RAL and ethanolamine. This compound, (E,E,E,E)-2-[9-(2-hydroxyethyl)imino-3,7-dimethyl-1,3,5,7- decatrien-1-yl]-1,3,3-trimethylcyclohexene (HIDD), has been synthesized and structurally characterized. The photophysical and photochemical properties of HIDD and its protonated form, HIDD-H+, have been investigated using steady-state and time-resolved methods. Both HIDD and HIDD-H+ are weakly fluorescent, and the fluorescence lifetime and quantum yield for HIDD are ca 0.6 ns and 4.0 +/- 0.5 x 10(-4), respectively. HIDD forms a triplet excited state on direct excitation that decays with kd = 3.4 x 10(4) s-1. The extinction coefficient and quantum yield of intersystem crossing for the HIDD triplet are measured as 7.6 +/- 1.3 x 10(4) M-1 cm-1 and 0.055 +/- 0.006, respectively. The triplet excited state of HIDD-H+ can be sensitized by triplet energy transfer and has a decay rate constant of 1.6 x 10(4) s-1. The lifetime of the HIDD triplet excited state is observed to decrease with increasing concentration of the well-known electron or hydrogen atom donors, 2,3,5,6-tetramethyl-1,4-phenylenediamine and 2,3,5-trimethylhydroquinone, and the bimolecular rate constants for these reactions are approximately 5.4 x 10(6) M-1 s-1 and 1.7 x 10(8) M-1 s-1, respectively. These types of reactions may model photooxidative mechanisms of damage in the retina.     

PHOTOCHEMICAL AND PHOTOPHYSICAL STUDIES ON HUMAN LENS CONSTITUENTS

The young human lens contains species (3-hydroxy kynurenine; 3-HK and its glucoside; 3-HKG) which absorb most light between 300 and 400 nm. Photochemical studies have indicated that these compounds are relatively inefficient sensitizers of lens proteins. An investigation of the fluorescent properties of 3-HKG indicate that it contains a fast deactivation pathway (ps) which would be expected to have minimal photochemical effect on the integrity of the lens. Further phot physical studies on 3-HK indicates that it has an even faster fluorescent lifetime (less than 10 ps) with a much lower quantum yield of fluorescence (0.001 vs 0.03 for 3-HKG). With aging, the human lens proteins undergo numerous changes including a generalized yellowing. These chromophores exhibit a higher quantum yield of fluorescence, an increase in the fluorescent lifetime by 2 orders of magnitude and the formation of two long lived transient species (microsecond). These species might be expected to drastically increase the susceptibility of the human lens to ambient radiation. Based upon quantitative experimental comparisons with 3-HK this does not seem to be the case. Further time resolved studies on old lens proteins indicate that the two transient species are interconnected in that the first transient species is the precursor to the second. The implications of this mechanism on the integrity of the lens and origin of those chromophores is discussed.