Fluorescence characteristics of pyrene and phosphatidylethanolamine-bound pyrene incorporated into lipid vesicles solubilized in media of differing NaCl concentrations

Covalently bound fluorescent probes as reporters for hydroxyl radical penetration into liposomal membranes

The ability of hydroxyl radicals to penetrate into liposomal model membranes (dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine) has been demonstrated. Liposomes were prepared and then characterized by digital fluorescence microscopy and dynamic light scattering after extrusion to determine liposomal lamellarity, size, and shape. Hydroxyl radicals were generated in the surrounding aqueous medium using a modified Fenton reagent (hydrogen peroxide and Fe(2+)) with the water-soluble iron chelator EDTA. High and low doses of radical were used, and the low dose was achieved with physiologically relevant iron and peroxide concentrations. Fluorescent probes covalently bound to the membrane phospholipid were used, including two lipophilic pyrenyl probes within the membrane bilayer and one polar probe at the water-membrane interface. Radical reactions with the probes were monitored by following the decrease in fluorescence and by observing oxidation products via matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Differences in the probe position within the membrane were correlated with the reactivity of the probe to assess radical access to the site of the probe. For all probes, reaction rates increased with increasing temperature. Within the membrane bilayer, reaction rates were greater for the probe closest to the membrane-water interface. Cholesterol protected these probes from oxidation. Kinetic models, scavenger studies, and product identification studies indicated that hydroxyl radical reacted directly with the in-membrane probes without the mediation of a secondary radical.

Pyrene-labeled lipids as tools in membrane biophysics and cell biology

Pyrene is one of the most frequently used lipid-linked fluorophores. Its most characteristic features are a long excited state lifetime and (local) concentration-dependent formation of excimers. Pyrene is also hydrophobic and thus does not significantly distort the conformation of the labeled lipid molecule. These characteristics make pyrene lipids well-suited for studies on a variety of biophysical phenomena like lateral diffusion, inter- or transbilayer movement of lipids and lateral organization of membranes. Pyrene lipids have also been widely employed to determine protein binding to membranes, lipid conformation and the activity of lipolytic enzymes. In cell biology, pyrene lipids are promising tools for studies on lipid trafficking and metabolism, as well as for microscopic mapping of membrane properties. The main disadvantage of pyrene lipids is the relatively large size of the fluorophore. Another disadvantage is that they require UV-excitation, which is not feasible with all microscopes.

Relationship between membrane lipid mobility and spectrin distribution in lymphocytes

We have previously established that T and B lymphocytes in situ are remarkably heterogeneous with respect to the cytoskeletal protein spectrin. Since in erythrocytes spectrin is known to play an important role in the regulation of membrane fluidity, lipid organization and lateral mobility of membrane proteins, we have sought to determine if the heterogeneous patterns of spectrin distribution that we have observed are related to possible differences in membrane lipid organization in these various subsets. To this end, we have utilized a fluorescent pyrene-labelled phospholipid as a probe of the lipid lateral mobility and have examined two related T cell systems maintained in vitro, DO.11.10 cells and a spontaneously arising variant, DO.11.10V. In these (and other cloned in vitro systems) we have previously observed that the cells homogeneously express one of the kinds of spectrin distribution patterns observed in situ. Thus the uniformity of staining of these systems permits us to address whether the various patterns of spectrin distribution may be predictive of differences in membrane lipid properties. Here we show that in cells in which there is little or nor spectrin at the plasma membrane (DO.11.10) that the lipids in the plasma membrane are considerably less mobile than in its related variant in which spectrin is diffusely distributed within the cell and at the plasma membrane. From this and previous results, we conclude that differences in the distribution of the cytoskeletal protein spectrin among lymphocytes may be a useful parameter in helping to predict the status of membrane lipid organization.