Dynamic analytical chemistry: A trial study of the interaction of fluorogenic reagents with living chinese hamster ovary cells

The concept of dynamic analytical chemistry, which deals with the qualitative localization or the quantitative transportation of a known or unknown component or its conversion into a product within living cells, is introduced. The concept was tested using cultured Chinese hamster ovary cells in a phosphate-buffered saline medium in the presence of fluorogenic reagents for amines and thiols. The phenomenon was observed and recorded with a fluorescence microscope equipped with a SIT camera. Among the reagents, 4-fluoro-7-nitro-2,1,3-benzoxadiazole (NBD-F) added to the culture medium was first trapped at the surface of the cells and then passed inside the cells to react with the mitochondria to give yellow fluorescence, o-Phthalaldehyde and 4-aminosulphonyl-7-fluoro-2, 1,3-benzoxadiazole reacted with the cells to give a blue florescence at certain sites inside the cells. One of the two major components labelled with NBD-F appeared to be phosphatidylethanolamine, a component of the plasma membrane. Its identification and quantitation were effected by conventional analytical techniques, such as thin-layer and liquid chromatography, following enzymatic hydrolysis. The fate of the N-NBD-phosphatidylethanolamine is discussed.