Biosensors based on peptide exposure show single molecule conformations in live cells.

We describe an approach to study the conformation of individual proteins during single particle tracking (SPT) in living cells. "Binder/tag" is based on incorporation of a 7-mer peptide (the tag) into a protein where its solvent exposure is controlled by protein conformation. Only upon exposure can the peptide specifically interact with a reporter protein (the binder). Thus, simple fluorescence localization reflects protein conformation. Through direct excitation of bright dyes, the trajectory and conformation of individual proteins can be followed. Simple protein engineering provides highly specific biosensors suitable for SPT and FRET. We describe tagSrc, tagFyn, tagSyk, tagFAK, and an orthogonal binder/tag pair. SPT showed slowly diffusing islands of activated Src within Src clusters and dynamics of activation in adhesions. Quantitative analysis and stochastic modeling revealed in vivo Src kinetics. The simplicity of binder/tag can provide access to diverse proteins.

Transmembrane Pickets Connect Cyto- and Pericellular Skeletons Forming Barriers to Receptor Engagement.

Phagocytic receptors must diffuse laterally to become activated upon clustering by multivalent targets. Receptor diffusion, however, can be obstructed by transmembrane proteins ("pickets") that are immobilized by interacting with the cortical cytoskeleton. The molecular identity of these pickets and their role in phagocytosis have not been defined. We used single-molecule tracking to study the interaction between Fcγ receptors and CD44, an abundant transmembrane protein capable of indirect association with F-actin, hence likely to serve as a picket. CD44 tethers reversibly to formin-induced actin filaments, curtailing receptor diffusion. Such linear filaments predominate in the trailing end of polarized macrophages, where receptor mobility was minimal. Conversely, receptors were most mobile at the leading edge, where Arp2/3-driven actin branching predominates. CD44 binds hyaluronan, anchoring a pericellular coat that also limits receptor displacement and obstructs access to phagocytic targets. Force must be applied to traverse the pericellular barrier, enabling receptors to engage their targets.

ATP-Driven Separation of Liquid Phase Condensates in Bacteria.

Liquid-liquid phase-separated (LLPS) states are key to compartmentalizing components in the absence of membranes; however, it is unclear whether LLPS condensates are actively and specifically organized in the subcellular space and by which mechanisms. Here, we address this question by focusing on the ParABS DNA segregation system, composed of a centromeric-like sequence (parS), a DNA-binding protein (ParB), and a motor (ParA). We show that parS and ParB associate to form nanometer-sized, round condensates. ParB molecules diffuse rapidly within the nucleoid volume but display confined motions when trapped inside ParB condensates. Single ParB molecules are able to rapidly diffuse between different condensates, and nucleation is strongly favored by parS. Notably, the ParA motor is required to prevent the fusion of ParB condensates. These results describe a novel active mechanism that splits, segregates, and localizes non-canonical LLPS condensates in the subcellular space.

Direct Visualization of Native CRISPR Target Search in Live Bacteria Reveals Cascade DNA Surveillance Mechanism.

CRISPR-Cas systems encode RNA-guided surveillance complexes to find and cleave invading DNA elements. While it is thought that invaders are neutralized minutes after cell entry, the mechanism and kinetics of target search and its impact on CRISPR protection levels have remained unknown. Here, we visualize individual Cascade complexes in a native type I CRISPR-Cas system. We uncover an exponential relation between Cascade copy number and CRISPR interference levels, pointing to a time-driven arms race between invader replication and target search, in which 20 Cascade complexes provide 50% protection. Driven by PAM-interacting subunit Cas8e, Cascade spends half its search time rapidly probing DNA (∼30 ms) in the nucleoid. We further demonstrate that target DNA transcription and CRISPR arrays affect the integrity of Cascade and affect CRISPR interference. Our work establishes the mechanism of cellular DNA surveillance by Cascade that allows the timely detection of invading DNA in a crowded, DNA-packed environment.

Separating Actin-Dependent Chemokine Receptor Nanoclustering from Dimerization Indicates a Role for Clustering in CXCR4 Signaling and Function.

A current challenge in cell motility studies is to understand the molecular and physical mechanisms that govern chemokine receptor nanoscale organization at the cell membrane, and their influence on cell response. Using single-particle tracking and super-resolution microscopy, we found that the chemokine receptor CXCR4 forms basal nanoclusters in resting T cells, whose extent, dynamics, and signaling strength are modulated by the orchestrated action of the actin cytoskeleton, the co-receptor CD4, and its ligand CXCL12. We identified three CXCR4 structural residues that are crucial for nanoclustering and generated an oligomerization-defective mutant that dimerized but did not form nanoclusters in response to CXCL12, which severely impaired signaling. Overall, our data provide new insights to the field of chemokine biology by showing that receptor dimerization in the absence of nanoclustering is unable to fully support CXCL12-mediated responses, including signaling and cell function in vivo.

Single-chromosome dynamics reveals locus-dependent dynamics and chromosome territory orientation.

Dynamic chromatin organization instantly influences DNA accessibility through modulating local macromolecular density and interactions, driving changes in transcription activities. Chromatin dynamics have been reported to be locally confined but contribute to coherent chromatin motion across the entire nucleus. However, the regulation of dynamics, nuclear orientation and compaction of subregions along a single chromosome are not well-understood. We used CRISPR-based real-time single-particle tracking and polymer models to characterize the dynamics of specific genomic loci and determine compaction levels of large human chromosomal domains. Our studies showed that chromosome compaction changed during interphase and that compactions of two arms on chromosome 19 were different. The dynamics of genomic loci were subdiffusive and dependent on chromosome regions and transcription states. Surprisingly, the correlation between locus-dependent nuclear localization and mobility was negligible. Strong tethering interactions detected at the pericentromeric region implies local condensation or associations with organelles within local nuclear microenvironments, such as chromatin-nuclear body association. Based on our findings, we propose a 'guided radial model' for the nuclear orientation of the long arm of chromosome 19.

Stochastic particle unbinding modulates growth dynamics and size of transcription factor condensates in living cells.

Liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS) is emerging as a key physical principle for biological organization inside living cells, forming condensates that play important regulatory roles. Inside living nuclei, transcription factor (TF) condensates regulate transcriptional initiation and amplify the transcriptional output of expressed genes. However, the biophysical parameters controlling TF condensation are still poorly understood. Here we applied a battery of single-molecule imaging, theory, and simulations to investigate the physical properties of TF condensates of the progesterone receptor (PR) in living cells. Analysis of individual PR trajectories at different ligand concentrations showed marked signatures of a ligand-tunable LLPS process. Using a machine learning architecture, we found that receptor diffusion within condensates follows fractional Brownian motion resulting from viscoelastic interactions with chromatin. Interestingly, condensate growth dynamics at shorter times is dominated by Brownian motion coalescence (BMC), followed by a growth plateau at longer timescales that result in nanoscale condensate sizes. To rationalize these observations, we extended on the BMC model by including the stochastic unbinding of particles within condensates. Our model reproduced the BMC behavior together with finite condensate sizes at the steady state, fully recapitulating our experimental data. Overall, our results are consistent with condensate growth dynamics being regulated by the escaping probability of PR molecules from condensates. The interplay between condensation assembly and molecular escaping maintains an optimum physical condensate size. Such phenomena must have implications for the biophysical regulation of other nuclear condensates and could also operate in multiple biological scenarios.

Multicolor Long-Term Single-Particle Tracking Using 10 nm Upconverting Nanoparticles.

Single-particle tracking (SPT) is a powerful technique to unveil molecular behaviors crucial to the understanding of many biological processes, but it is limited by factors such as probe photostability and spectral orthogonality. To overcome these limitations, we develop upconverting nanoparticles (UCNPs), which are photostable over several hours at the single-particle level, enabling long-term multicolor SPT. We investigate the brightness of core-shell UCNPs as a function of inert shell thickness to minimize particle size while maintaining sufficient signal for SPT. We explore different rare-earth dopants to optimize for the brightest probes and find that UCNPs doped with 2% Tm3+/30% Yb3+, 10% Er3+/90% Yb3+, and 15% Tm3+/85% Yb3+ represent the optimal probes for blue, green, and near-infrared emission, respectively. The multiplexed 10 nm probes enable three-color single-particle tracking on live HeLa cells for tens of minutes using a single, near-infrared excitation source. These photostable and multiplexed probes open new avenues for numerous biological applications.

Ligand Separation on Nanoconstructs Affects Targeting Selectivity to Protein Dimers on Cell Membranes.

This work demonstrates that targeting ligand density on nanoparticles can affect interactions between the nanoconstructs and cell membrane receptors. We discovered that when the separation between covalently grafted DNA aptamers on gold nanostars was comparable to the distance between binding sites on a receptor dimer (matched density; MD), nanoconstructs exhibited a higher selectivity for binding to the dimeric form of the protein. Single-particle dynamics of MD nanoconstructs showed slower rotational rates and larger translational footprints on cancer cells expressing more dimeric forms of receptors (dimer+) compared with cells having more monomeric forms (dimer-). In contrast, nanoconstructs with either increased (nonmatched density; NDlow) or decreased ligand spacing (NDhigh) had minimal changes in dynamics on either dimer+ or dimer- cells. Real-time, single-particle analyses can reveal the importance of nanoconstruct ligand density for the selective targeting of membrane receptors in live cells.

Deep Learning-Assisted Automated Multidimensional Single Particle Tracking in Living Cells.

The translational and rotational dynamics of anisotropic optical nanoprobes revealed in single particle tracking (SPT) experiments offer molecular-level information about cellular activities. Here, we report an automated high-speed multidimensional SPT system integrated with a deep learning algorithm for tracking the 3D orientation of anisotropic gold nanoparticle probes in living cells with high localization precision (<10 nm) and temporal resolution (0.9 ms), overcoming the limitations of rotational tracking under low signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) conditions. This method can resolve the azimuth (0°-360°) and polar angles (0°-90°) with errors of less than 2° on the experimental and simulated data under S/N of ∼4. Even when the S/N approaches the limit of 1, this method still maintains better robustness and noise resistance than the conventional pattern matching methods. The usefulness of this multidimensional SPT system has been demonstrated with a study of the motions of cargos transported along the microtubules within living cells.

Identification of Early Stage Liver Fibrosis by Modifications in the Interstitial Space Diffusive Microenvironment Using Fluorescent Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes.

During liver fibrosis, recurrent hepatic injuries lead to the accumulation of collagen and other extracellular matrix components in the interstitial space, ultimately disrupting liver functions. Early stages of liver fibrosis may be reversible, but opportunities for diagnosis at these stages are currently limited. Here, we show that the alterations of the interstitial space associated with fibrosis can be probed by tracking individual fluorescent single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) diffusing in that space. In a mouse model of early liver fibrosis, we find that nanotubes generally explore elongated areas, whose lengths decrease as the disease progresses, even in regions where histopathological examination does not reveal fibrosis yet. Furthermore, this decrease in nanotube mobility is a purely geometrical effect as the instantaneous nanotube diffusivity stays unmodified. This work establishes the promise of SWCNTs both for diagnosing liver fibrosis at an early stage and for more in-depth studies of the biophysical effects of the disease.

Neural Tracing Protein-Functionalized Nanoparticles Capable of Fast Retrograde Axonal Transport in Live Neurons.

Neural tracing proteins like horseradish peroxidase-conjugated wheat germ agglutinin (WGA-HRP) can target the central nervous system (CNS) through anatomic retrograde transport without crossing the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Conjugating WGA-HRP to nanoparticles may enable the creation of BBB-bypassing nanomedicine. Microfluidics and two-photon confocal microscopy is applied to screen nanocarriers for transport efficacy and gain mechanistic insights into their interactions with neurons. Protein modification of gold nanoparticles alters their cellular uptake at the axonal terminal and activates fast retrograde transport. Trajectory analysis of individual endosomes carrying the nanoparticles reveals a run-and-pause pattern along the axon with endosomes carrying WGA-HRP-conjugated gold nanoparticles exhibiting longer run duration and faster instantaneous velocity than those carrying nonconjugated nanoparticles. The results offer a mechanistic explanation of the different axonal transport dynamics as well as a cell-based functional assay of neuron-targeted nanoparticles with the goal of developing BBB-bypassing nanomedicine for the treatment of nervous system disorders.

Efficient clathrin-mediated entry of enteric adenoviruses in human duodenal cells.

IMPORTANCE: Enteric adenoviruses have historically been difficult to grow in cell culture, which has resulted in lack of knowledge of host factors and pathways required for infection of these medically relevant viruses. Previous studies in non-intestinal cell lines showed slow infection kinetics and generated comparatively low virus yields compared to other adenovirus types. We suggest duodenum-derived HuTu80 cells as a superior cell line for studies to complement efforts using complex intestinal tissue models. We show that viral host cell factors required for virus entry differ between cell lines from distinct origins and demonstrate the importance of clathrin-mediated endocytosis.

Single Particle Analysis of H3N2 Influenza Entry Differentiates the Impact of the Sialic Acids (Neu5Ac and Neu5Gc) on Virus Binding and Membrane Fusion.

Entry of influenza A viruses (IAVs) into host cells is initiated by binding to sialic acids (Sias), their primary host cell receptor, followed by endocytosis and membrane fusion to release the viral genome into the cytoplasm of the host cell. Host tropism is affected by these entry processes, with a primary factor being receptor specificity. Sias exist in several different chemical forms, including the hydroxylated N-glycolylneuraminic acid (Neu5Gc), which is found in many hosts; however, it has not been clear how modified Sias affect viral binding and entry. Neu5Gc is commonly found in many natural influenza hosts, including pigs and horses, but not in humans or ferrets. Here, we engineered HEK293 cells to express the hydoxylase gene (CMAH) that converts Neu5Ac to Neu5Gc, or knocked out the Sia-CMP transport gene (SLC35A1), resulting in cells that express 95% Neu5Gc or minimal level of Sias, respectively. H3N2 (X-31) showed significantly reduced infectivity in Neu5Gc-rich cells compared to wild-type HEK293 (>95% Neu5Ac). To determine the effects on binding and fusion, we generated supported lipid bilayers (SLBs) derived from the plasma membranes of these cells and carried out single particle microscopy. H3N2 (X-31) exhibited decreased binding to Neu5Gc-containing SLBs, but no significant difference in H3N2 (X-31)'s fusion kinetics to either SLB type, suggesting that reduced receptor binding does not affect subsequent membrane fusion. This finding suggests that for this virus to adapt to host cells rich in Neu5Gc, only receptor affinity changes are required without further adaptation of virus fusion machinery. IMPORTANCE Influenza A virus (IAV) infections continue to threaten human health, causing over 300,000 deaths yearly. IAV infection is initiated by the binding of influenza glycoprotein hemagglutinin (HA) to host cell sialic acids (Sias) and the subsequent viral-host membrane fusion. Generally, human IAVs preferentially bind to the Sia N-acetylneuraminic acid (Neu5Ac). Yet, other mammalian hosts, including pigs, express diverse nonhuman Sias, including N-glycolylneuraminic acid (Neu5Gc). The role of Neu5Gc in human IAV infections in those hosts is not well-understood, and the variant form may play a role in incidents of cross-species transmission and emergence of new epidemic variants. Therefore, it is important to investigate how human IAVs interact with Neu5Ac and Neu5Gc. Here, we use membrane platforms that mimic the host cell surface to examine receptor binding and membrane fusion events of human IAV H3N2. Our findings improve the understanding of viral entry mechanisms that can affect host tropism and virus evolution.

A deep learning-based approach to model anomalous diffusion of membrane proteins: the case of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor.

We present a concatenated deep-learning multiple neural network system for the analysis of single-molecule trajectories. We apply this machine learning-based analysis to characterize the translational diffusion of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor at the plasma membrane, experimentally interrogated using superresolution optical microscopy. The receptor protein displays a heterogeneous diffusion behavior that goes beyond the ensemble level, with individual trajectories exhibiting more than one diffusive state, requiring the optimization of the neural networks through a hyperparameter analysis for different numbers of steps and durations, especially for short trajectories (<50 steps) where the accuracy of the models is most sensitive to localization errors. We next use the statistical models to test for Brownian, continuous-time random walk and fractional Brownian motion, and introduce and implement an additional, two-state model combining Brownian walks and obstructed diffusion mechanisms, enabling us to partition the two-state trajectories into segments, each of which is independently subjected to multiple analysis. The concatenated multi-network system evaluates and selects those physical models that most accurately describe the receptor's translational diffusion. We show that the two-state Brownian-obstructed diffusion model can account for the experimentally observed anomalous diffusion (mostly subdiffusive) of the population and the heterogeneous single-molecule behavior, accurately describing the majority (72.5 to 88.7% for α-bungarotoxin-labeled receptor and between 73.5 and 90.3% for antibody-labeled molecules) of the experimentally observed trajectories, with only ~15% of the trajectories fitting to the fractional Brownian motion model.

DNA choreography: correlating mobility and organization of DNA across different resolutions from loops to chromosomes.

The dynamics of DNA in the cell nucleus plays a role in cellular processes and fates but the interplay of DNA mobility with the hierarchical levels of DNA organization is still underexplored. Here, we made use of DNA replication to directly label genomic DNA in an unbiased genome-wide manner. This was followed by live-cell time-lapse microscopy of the labeled DNA combining imaging at different resolutions levels simultaneously and allowing one to trace DNA motion across organization levels within the same cells. Quantification of the labeled DNA segments at different microscopic resolution levels revealed sizes comparable to the ones reported for DNA loops using 3D super-resolution microscopy, topologically associated domains (TAD) using 3D widefield microscopy, and also entire chromosomes. By employing advanced chromatin tracking and image registration, we discovered that DNA exhibited higher mobility at the individual loop level compared to the TAD level and even less at the chromosome level. Additionally, our findings indicate that chromatin movement, regardless of the resolution, slowed down during the S phase of the cell cycle compared to the G1/G2 phases. Furthermore, we found that a fraction of DNA loops and TADs exhibited directed movement with the majority depicting constrained movement. Our data also indicated spatial mobility differences with DNA loops and TADs at the nuclear periphery and the nuclear interior exhibiting lower velocity and radius of gyration than the intermediate locations. On the basis of these insights, we propose that there is a link between DNA mobility and its organizational structure including spatial distribution, which impacts cellular processes.

Reciprocal effect on lateral diffusion of receptor for advanced glycation endproducts and toll-like receptor 4 in the HEK293 cell membrane.

Receptor for advanced glycation endproducts (RAGE) and toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) are pattern-recognition receptors that bind to molecular patterns associated with pathogens, stress, and cellular damage. Diffusion plays an important role in receptor functionality in the cell membrane. However, there has been no prior investigation of the reciprocal effect of RAGE and TLR4 diffusion properties in the presence and absence of each receptor. This study reports how RAGE and TLR4 affect the mobility of each other in the human embryonic kidney (HEK) 293 cell membrane. Diffusion properties were measured using single-particle tracking (SPT) with quantum dots (QDs) that are selectively attached to RAGE or TLR4. The Brownian diffusion coefficients of RAGE and TLR4 are affected by the presence of the other receptor, leading to similar diffusion coefficients when both receptors coexist in the cell. When TLR4 is present, the average Brownian diffusion coefficient of RAGE increases by 40%, while the presence of RAGE decreases the average Brownian diffusion coefficient of TLR4 by 32%. Diffusion in confined membrane domains is not altered by the presence of the other receptor. The mobility of the cell membrane lipid remains constant whether one or both receptors are present. Overall, this work shows that the presence of each receptor can affect a subset of diffusion properties of the other receptor without affecting the mobility of the membrane.

Porcine ex-vivo intestinal mucus has age-dependent blocking activity against transmissible gastroenteritis virus.

Transmissible gastroenteritis virus (TGEV) causes high mortality in young piglets (< 3 days of age). With aging, the susceptibility/morbidity/mortality rates drop. We previously hypothesized that the age-related changes in the intestinal mucus could be responsible for this resistance. Hence, this study investigated the effect of porcine intestinal mucus from 3-day and 3-week-old pigs on the free mobility of the virulent TGEV Miller strain, and on the infection in swine testicle (ST) cells. Single particle tracking (SPT) revealed that TGEV had significantly higher diffusion coefficients in 3-day mucus compared to 3-week mucus. TGEV and charged and uncharged control nanoparticles diffused freely in 3-day mucus but were hindered by 3-week mucus in the diffusion model; TGEV mimicked the diffusion behavior of negatively charged carboxylated particles. Inoculation of ST cells with TGEV in the presence of 3-week mucus resulted in a significantly lower average number of infected cells (30.9 ± 11.9/5 fields) compared with 3-day mucus (84.6 ± 16.4/5 fields). These results show that 3-week mucus has a significant TGEV-blocking activity compared to 3-day mucus in free diffusion and infection of the underlying susceptible cells. Additionally, a label-free proteomics analysis revealed an increased expression of mucin 13, known for negatively regulating the tight junctions in intestinal epithelium, in 3-day-old pigs. In 3-week-old pigs, a higher expression of mucin 2, a type of secreted mucin which is known for inhibiting coronavirus infection, was observed. Concludingly, this study demonstrated a protective effect of 3-week mucus against viral infections.

Single-Molecule Imaging Reveals that Rad4 Employs a Dynamic DNA Damage Recognition Process.

Nucleotide excision repair (NER) is an evolutionarily conserved mechanism that processes helix-destabilizing and/or -distorting DNA lesions, such as UV-induced photoproducts. Here, we investigate the dynamic protein-DNA interactions during the damage recognition step using single-molecule fluorescence microscopy. Quantum dot-labeled Rad4-Rad23 (yeast XPC-RAD23B ortholog) forms non-motile complexes or conducts a one-dimensional search via either random diffusion or constrained motion. Atomic force microcopy analysis of Rad4 with the ß-hairpin domain 3 (BHD3) deleted reveals that this motif is non-essential for damage-specific binding and DNA bending. Furthermore, we find that deletion of seven residues in the tip of ß-hairpin in BHD3 increases Rad4-Rad23 constrained motion at the expense of stable binding at sites of DNA lesions, without diminishing cellular UV resistance or photoproduct repair in vivo. These results suggest a distinct intermediate in the damage recognition process during NER, allowing dynamic DNA damage detection at a distance.

Biased activation of the receptor tyrosine kinase HER2.

HER2 belongs to the ErbB sub-family of receptor tyrosine kinases and regulates cellular proliferation and growth. Different from other ErbB receptors, HER2 has no known ligand. Activation occurs through heterodimerization with other ErbB receptors and their cognate ligands. This suggests several possible activation paths of HER2 with ligand-specific, differential response, which has so far remained unexplored. Using single-molecule tracking and the diffusion profile of HER2 as a proxy for activity, we measured the activation strength and temporal profile in live cells. We found that HER2 is strongly activated by EGFR-targeting ligands EGF and TGFα, yet with a distinguishable temporal fingerprint. The HER4-targeting ligands EREG and NRGß1 showed weaker activation of HER2, a preference for EREG, and a delayed response to NRGß1. Our results indicate a selective ligand response of HER2 that may serve as a regulatory element. Our experimental approach is easily transferable to other membrane receptors targeted by multiple ligands.