Temperature sensing using red fluorescent protein

Kanagavel Deepankumar; Saravanan Prabhu Nadarajan; Dong-Ho Bae; Kwang-Hyun Baek; Kwon-Young Choi; Hyungdon Yun

doi:10.1007/s12257-014-0456-z

Temperature sensing using red fluorescent protein

Biotechnol Bioprocess Eng. 2015;20(1):67-72. doi: 10.1007/s12257-014-0456-z. Epub 2015 Mar 18.

Authors

Kanagavel Deepankumar¹, Saravanan Prabhu Nadarajan², Dong-Ho Bae², Kwang-Hyun Baek¹, Kwon-Young Choi³, Hyungdon Yun²

Affiliations

¹ 1School of Biotechnology, Yeungnam University, Gyeongsan, 712-749 Korea.
² 2Department of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Konkuk University, Seoul, 143-701 Korea.
³ 3Department of Environmental Engineering, College of Engineering, Ajou University, Suwon, 443-749 Korea.

Abstract

Genetically encoded fluorescent proteins are extensively utilized for labeling and imaging proteins, organelles, cell tissues, and whole organisms. In this study, we explored the feasibility of mRFP1 and its variants for measuring intracellular temperature. A linear relationship was observed between the temperature and fluorescence intensity of mRFP1 and its variants. Temperature sensitivities of E. coli expressing mRFP1, mRFP-P63A and mRFP-P63A[(4R)-FP] were -1.27%, -1.26% and -0.77%/°C, respectively. Finally, we demonstrated the potentiality of mRFP1 and its variants as an in vivo temperature sensor.

Keywords: 4-fluoroproline; mRFP1; non-canonical amino acid incorporation; temperature sensor; thermal stability.