Effects of the cyanine dye 3,3'-dipropylthiocarbocyanine on mitochondrial energy conservation

Mitochondria-Targeted Triphenylphosphonium-Based Compounds: Syntheses, Mechanisms of Action, and Therapeutic and Diagnostic Applications

Mitochondria are recognized as one of the most important targets for new drug design in cancer, cardiovascular, and neurological diseases. Currently, the most effective way to deliver drugs specifically to mitochondria is by covalent linking a lipophilic cation such as an alkyltriphenylphosphonium moiety to a pharmacophore of interest. Other delocalized lipophilic cations, such as rhodamine, natural and synthetic mitochondria-targeting peptides, and nanoparticle vehicles, have also been used for mitochondrial delivery of small molecules. Depending on the approach used, and the cell and mitochondrial membrane potentials, more than 1000-fold higher mitochondrial concentration can be achieved. Mitochondrial targeting has been developed to study mitochondrial physiology and dysfunction and the interaction between mitochondria and other subcellular organelles and for treatment of a variety of diseases such as neurodegeneration and cancer. In this Review, we discuss efforts to target small-molecule compounds to mitochondria for probing mitochondria function, as diagnostic tools and potential therapeutics. We describe the physicochemical basis for mitochondrial accumulation of lipophilic cations, synthetic chemistry strategies to target compounds to mitochondria, mitochondrial probes, and sensors, and examples of mitochondrial targeting of bioactive compounds. Finally, we review published attempts to apply mitochondria-targeted agents for the treatment of cancer and neurodegenerative diseases.

Time-resolved microfluorometric study of the binding sites of lipophilic cationic pyrene probes in mitochondria of living HeLa cells

Lipophilic dye cations specifically bind to the mitochondria of living cells. Using fluorescent dyes, the mitochondria can easily be observed with a fluorescence microscope. Electron microscopy has shown that the dyes are bound to the inner mitochondrial membranes and the cristae. Using time-resolved fluorescence microscopy we have investigated, whether the dye molecules are preferentially accumulated at the strongly hydrophobic protein complexes of energy metabolism or at the lipids of the inner membrane system. In order to use our nanosecond-pulsed laser fluorometer we synthesized specially designed lipophilic pyrene cations with S1 lifetimes in the nanosecond domain, which specifically stain mitochondria in living HeLa cells. Model experiments with artificial membranes such as liposomes, proteoliposomes and also protein complexes have shown that the fluorescence is strongly quenched by oxygen if the pyrene probes are bound to lipids. Binding to proteins causes a much smaller quenching effect. In artificial systems, all decays were single exponential. This is in contrast with incubated HeLa cells, which showed double-exponential fluorescence decays. Comparing these with the artificial systems we came to the conclusion that in HeLa cells the long-lived species 1 are pyrene probes preferentially bound to the proteins of the inner mitochondrial membranes. The short-lived species 2 is caused by fluorescence resonance energy transfer from the pyrene probes as donors to cytochromes of the inner membranes as acceptors. From our decay data we estimated a mean distance between donor and acceptor of about 40 A. This is the same order of magnitude as the mean diameters of several mitochondrial protein complexes. Therefore we assumed that species 2 are pyrene probes bound either to mitochondrial proteins with cytochromes as constituents or to the interface between these proteins and the phospholipids of the membranes. Thus both species 1 and species 2 are spatially related to mitochrondrial proteins. This agrees with the observation that respiration of HeLa cells as well as cytochrome c oxidase vesicles (COVs) are inhibited with increasing concentration of pyrene probes. Finally, we studied the photodynamic effect on irradiation of HeLa cells and of COVs after incubation with lipophilic pyrene and porphyrine cations.

Influence of trans-membrane potential and of hydrophobic interactions on dye accumulation in mitochondria of living cells. Photoaffinity labelling of mitochondrial proteins, action of potential dissipating drugs, and competitive staining

The lipophilic cationic fluorescent dye azopentylmethylindocarbocyanine (APMC) specifically stains the mitochondria in living cells. The dye contains a photosensitive diazirine ring and is suitable for photoaffinity labelling of mitochondrial proteins. By a combination of photoaffinity labelling cell cultures of mouse fibroblasts (LM) with APMC, lysis of the labelled cells, subsequent micro-gel electrophoresis and detection of the fluorescence of the labelled proteins in the gel lanes with a sensitive microfluorimeter, we determined the number, apparent molecular masses, and relative intensity of the labelled proteins. In LM cells, three proteins with apparent molecular masses of 31, 40, and 74 kDa were labelled with high intensity, and proteins of 28, 29, 44, 48, 49, 66, and 105 kDa with low intensity. Two effects mainly determine the binding of lipophilic dye cations to mitochondrial proteins in living cells: (1) interaction of the trans-membrane potential of the inner mitochondrial membrane with the dye cations; and (2) hydrophobic interactions between the strongly lipophilic proteins of the inner membrane and the lipophilic dye molecules. Preincubation of the cell cultures with drugs that dissipate the trans-membrane potential, such as valinomycin, 2,4-dinitrophenol (DNP) and 3-chlorcarbonyl-cyanide-phenylhydrazone (CCCP), strongly reduces or even prevents APMC labelling of mitochondrial proteins. The influence of hydrophobic interactions was investigated by competitive staining experiments using dyes with very different lipophilic properties. The lipophilicity of the dyes was characterized by their Rm values in reversed phase thin-layer chromatography.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Photoaffinity labelling with fluorescence detection. Dye accumulation at four mitochondrial proteins in HeLa and LM cells

A micromethod was developed for investigating the interactions between fluorescent dyes and cellular proteins. The lipophilic cationic dye APMC (azopentylmethylcarbocyanine) contains a photosensitive diazirine ring and is suitable for photoaffinity labelling. By combining photoaffinity labelling of cultured cells, micro-gel electrophoresis and detection of the fluorescence with a microfluorimeter, we established a highly sensitive and rapid procedure to identify APMC labelled proteins. Cells which had been incubated for 10 min with 10(-8) M APMC could be analysed for APMC binding without difficulty. Under our experimental conditions this corresponds to about 0.2 nmol APMC per mg protein. The lipophilic APMC specifically stains the mitochondria in living HeLa and LM cells. The fluorescing mitochondria can be easily detected under a fluorescence microscope. By photoaffinity labelling we were able to show that at low dye concentrations APMC preferentially marks four proteins with apparent molecular masses of 31, 40, 66, and 74 kDa. In order to establish that these are mitochondrial proteins, we isolated and analysed the mitochondria from incubated HeLa and LM cells; again, the same four proteins were detected. They are most probably proteins of the inner mitochondrial membranes, which accumulate the lipophilic APMC cations.

The concentration jump method. Kinetics of vital staining of mitochondria in HeLa cells with lipophilic cationic fluorescent dyes

Lipophilic cationic fluorescent dyes (D) specifically stain the mitochondria of living cells. A perfusion chamber for cell cultures is described, which can be used to determine the kinetics of vital staining of the mitochondria of single selected cells in situ. In these experiments styrylpyridinium dyes and cultures of HeLa cells were used. The dyes differ strongly in their lipophilic properties; Rm values and the partition coefficients Po/w between n-octanol (o) and water (w) were determined in order to characterize their lipophilicity. In the thermostat-regulated chamber the concentration of the dye CD can be increased from CD = 0 to CD > 0 within a few seconds (concentration jump). Thus, the time t = 0 for the beginning of the vital staining and the dye concentration in the cell medium during the staining experiment, CD = const., are unambiguously defined. The concentration of the dye, Cb, which is bound to the mitochondria (b), is proportional to the intensity of the fluorescence Ib. On the other hand, the free dye molecules (f) in the aqueous medium exhibit practically no fluorescence, I(f) << Ib. The intensity of the fluorescence I = Ib was measured as a function of time t; the measured values were corrected for photobleaching. The fluorescence intensity I(t) at first increases linearly with t and reaches a saturation value for t-->infinity. In the linear range of I(t) the flow J(o) = (dI/dt)o of the dye into the cell depends strongly on the dye concentration and increases linearly with CD. The concentration range CD = 10(-9)-10(-5) M at 37 degrees C was investigated. From the linear correlation between J(o) and CD it follows that the kinetics of the vital staining of mitochondria is controlled by diffusion. At t = 0 the flow of the xenobiotic agent through the cell membrane determines the rate of staining. The slope dJ(o)/dCD of the plot J(o) vs CD describes the efficiency of dye accumulation at the mitochondria and strongly increases with increasing lipophilicity of the dye molecules. Thus lipophilic dyes pass through the cell membrane more easily than less lipophilic molecules.

Sensitization to hyperthermia by 3,3'-dipentyloxacarbocyanine iodide: a positive correlation with DNA damage and negative correlations with altered cell morphology, oxygen consumption inhibition, and reduced ATP levels

The cyanine dye 3,3'-dipentyloxacarbocyanine iodide (DiOC5(3)) (concentrations of 0.5 microgram/ml to 5.0 micrograms/ml) was shown to be a potent sensitizer of Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells to hyperthermic cell killing at 43.0 degrees C or 45.5 degrees C, while exhibiting no cytotoxicity at 37.0 degrees C. Sensitization to hyperthermic cell killing was accompanied by an increase in damage to the DNA, as measured by DNA unwinding. The increased DNA damage correlated qualitatively with the enhanced heat killing induced by DiOC5(3). This correlation was better in cells heated at 43.0 degrees C than in those heated at 45.5 degrees C. DiOC5(3) is known to affect other cellular functions. It inhibits electron transport, uncouples oxidative phosphorylation, and inhibits calcium ATPases. The effects of DiOC5(3) on oxygen consumption and ATP content were therefore measured at 37.0 degrees C and at hyperthermic temperatures. The results demonstrated that inhibition of oxygen consumption and reduction of cellular ATP levels played no role in inducing heat sensitization in DiOC5(3)-treated cells, or in causing cell death in cells treated with heat alone.

Correlation between redistribution of a 26 kDa protein and development of chronic thermotolerance in various mammalian cell lines

Previous studies suggested that a 26 kDa protein might play an important role in protein synthesis-independent thermotolerance development in CHO cells. To determine if this phenomenon was universal, four mammalian cell lines, viz., CHO, HA-1, murine Swiss 3T3, and human HeLa, were studied. Cells were heated at 42 degrees C, and the level of 26 kDa protein in the nucleus was measured, together with clonogenic survival and protein synthesis. The results demonstrated that 1) the 26-kDa protein was present in the four different cell lines, and 2) the level of the 26 kDa protein in their nuclei was decreased by 30-70% after heating at 42 degrees C for 1 hr. However, restoration of this protein occurred along with development of chronic thermotolerance. The protein synthesis inhibitor cycloheximide (10 micrograms/ml) neither inhibited the development of chronic thermotolerance nor affected the restoration of the 26 kDa protein in the nucleus. In fact, this drug protected cells from hyperthermic killing and heat-induced reduction of 26 kDa protein in the nucleus. Heat sensitizers, quercetin (0.1 mM), 3,3'-dipentyloxacarbocyanine iodide (DiOC5[3]: 5 micrograms/ml), and stepdown heating (45 degrees C-10 min----42 degrees C), potentiated hyperthermic killing and inhibited or delayed the restoration of the 26 kDa protein to the nucleus. These results support a correlated, perhaps causal relationship between the restoration of the 26 kDa protein and chronic thermotolerance development in four different mammalian cell lines.

The effects of mitochondrial energetics inhibitors on the fluorescence of potential-sensitive dyes rhodamine 123 and diS-C3-(5) in lymphocyte suspensions

The effects of uncouplers (FCCP, DNF), oligomycin, and rotenone on the fluorescence of potential-sensitive dyes, rhodamine 123 and diS-C3-(5), in lymphocyte suspensions were compared. The fluorescence of these optical probes gradually increased at higher FCCP concentrations. The dependences of fluorescence intensities and FCCP concentrations were similar for both dyes, and only diS-C3-(5) fluorescence started increasing at lower FCCP concentrations. Rotenone (1 microM) significantly increased rhodamine 123 fluorescence. TMPD-induced and uncoupler-induced diS-C3-(5) fluorescence changes increased 1.5- to 2-fold if the incubation mixture was supplemented with oligomycin (0.1-0.2 microgram/ml). The fluorescence responses of the dyes in the lymphocyte suspension correlate with the effects of mitochondrial energetics inhibitors on delta psi m in isolated mitochondria. The results suggest the possibility of using these dyes for estimating the direction of the delta psi m changes in the lymphocyte suspension.

Mitochondrial membrane potential in lymphocytes as monitored by fluorescent cation diS-C3-(5)

A lipophilic fluorescent cation diS-C3-(5) and rotenone suppress the oxygen consumption rate of thymocytes in similar concentrations. Seventy percent inhibition corresponds to an inhibitor:cytochrome a molar ratio of about 1:1. Addition of uncouplers decreases the inhibition of respiration by diS-C3-(5) (but not rotenone). FCCP in similar concentrations increases O2 consumption in the absence of diS-C3-(5) and the diS-C3-(5) fluorescence intensity in the presence of TMPD in thymocyte suspensions. In most thymocyte preparations, oligomycin (0.05-0.1 microgram/mL) increases the fluorescence of diS-C3-(5) and further addition of TMPD (50-100 microM) decreases the fluorescence. Addition of NaCN (400 microM) after oligomycin leads to a fluorescence increase that is hardly affected by subsequent addition of 0.2 microM FCCP. Nigericin (10-50 nM) decreases the diS-C3-(5) fluorescence. The data indicate that the diS-C3-(5) fluorescence associated with mitochondrial transmembrane potential (delta psi m) may be an essential part of the diS-C3-(5) fluorescence in lymphocyte suspensions. The changes of the diS-C3-(5) fluorescence intensity in the presence of TMPD after FCCP addition reflect delta psi m.

The use of fluorescent dyes to measure membrane potentials: a critique

Under controlled conditions, fluorescent cyanine dyes can be used to measure membrane potentials of cell suspensions. Similar changes in membrane potential can be followed both with fluorescent dyes and electrophysiological probes in response to changes in the ion composition of the medium. Recent reports that attempt to abrogate the use of the cyanine dyes in measurements of the membrane potential are misleading.

Specific requirement for inorganic phosphate for induction of bilayer membrane conductance by the cationic uncoupler carbocyanine dye

The trinucleous divalent cationic cyanine dye triS-C4(5) was shown to be an uncoupler of oxidative phosphorylation in mitochondria only in reaction medium containing inorganic phosphate (Pi). This dye also induced marked increase in the electrical conductance of a phospholipid bilayer membrane in bathing solution containing Pi, but not in solution containing Tris-HCl buffer without Pi. Time-dependent fluctuation of the electrical current across the bilayer membrane was observed in the presence of triS-C4(5) only in bathing solution containing Pi. This fluctuation could be due to perturbation of the bilayer membrane structure induced by the cooperative action of the cyanine dye and Pi, and this perturbation should be directly related to their effects in increasing membrane conductance and also causing uncoupling in mitochondria.

A comparison of the phosphorylation potential and electrochemical proton gradient in mung bean mitochondria and phosphorylating sub-mitochondrial particles

The phosphorylation potential (delta Gp) and the electrochemical proton gradient (delta muH+) normally maintained during respiration or ATP hydrolysis by mung bean hypocotyl mitochondria and phosphorylating sub-mitochondrial particles have been investigated. Phosphorylation potential experiments using safranine and oxonol-VI, as membrane potential markers for mitochondria and sub-mitochondrial particles, respectively, suggest that the 'null point' delta Gp (i.e., the phosphorylation potential at which no change in optical signal occurred) corresponds to a value of 15.2 +/- 0.7 kcal/mol in mitochondria and 11.2 +/- 0.3 kcal/mol in sub-mitochondrial particles. The value of delta muH+ generated by the hydrolysis of ATP was estimated using ion distribution techniques. In each case a rapid centrifugation technique was used to separate the organelle from the suspending medium. The total delta muH+ generated in each case was approx. 200 mV being composed of both membrane potential and pH components. A comparison of delta muH+ with delta Gp indicates that the apparent H+/ATP ratio in mung bean mitochondria is 3.4 +/- 0.2 while in phosphorylating sub-mitochondrial particles it is 2.2 +/- 0.1.