Imaging changes in the polarity of lipid droplets during NAFLD-Induced ferroptosis via a red-emitting fluorescent probe with a large Stokes shift

Weibo Wang; Li Chai; Xin Chen; Zhiying Li; Linyan Feng; Wei Hu; Haibing Li; Guangfu Yang

doi:10.1016/j.bios.2023.115289

Imaging changes in the polarity of lipid droplets during NAFLD-Induced ferroptosis via a red-emitting fluorescent probe with a large Stokes shift

Biosens Bioelectron. 2023 Jul 1:231:115289. doi: 10.1016/j.bios.2023.115289. Epub 2023 Apr 5.

Authors

Weibo Wang¹, Li Chai², Xin Chen², Zhiying Li², Linyan Feng², Wei Hu³, Haibing Li⁴, Guangfu Yang¹

Affiliations

¹ National Key Laboratory of Green Pesticide, International Joint Research Center for Intelligent Biosensor Technology and Health, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, PR China.
² Department of Chemistry, Xinzhou Normal University, Xinzhou, Shanxi, 034000, PR China.
³ Department of Chemistry, Xinzhou Normal University, Xinzhou, Shanxi, 034000, PR China. Electronic address: huwchem@sust.edu.cn.
⁴ National Key Laboratory of Green Pesticide, International Joint Research Center for Intelligent Biosensor Technology and Health, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079, PR China. Electronic address: lhbing@mail.ccnu.edu.cn.

PMID: 37031507
DOI: 10.1016/j.bios.2023.115289

Abstract

Cell death resulting from ferroptosis is a consequence of the accumulation of lipid peroxides that are produced when lipids and reactive oxygen species (ROS) interact. This process is dependent on iron and alters the structure and polarity of lipid droplets (LDs). Unlike reactive fluorescent probes, environment-sensitive fluorescent probes can accurately monitor metabolic activities by sensing the intracellular environment of living organisms. To this end, we developed a polarity-sensitive fluorescent probe LIP-Ser that anchors to LDs and can be used to monitor changes in the polarity of LDs during ferroptosis by in situ imaging. LIP-Ser has a red-emitting (λ_em = 634 nm) and a large Stokes shift (Δλ = 161 nm in 1,4-dioxane), which avoids it from autofluorescence interference and crosstalk between excitation and emission spectra, thereby preventing low signal-to-noise ratio and severe fluorescence self-quenching during imaging. Additionally, LIP-Ser is used in this study to demonstrate that non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) promotes ferroptosis at the cellular and in vivo levels, and that inhibition of cellular ferroptosis effectively reduces the damage caused by NAFLD to cells and mouse liver tissue.

Keywords: Ferroptosis; Fluorescent probe; Imaging; Lipid droplets; Non-alcoholic fatty liver; Polarity sensitive.

MeSH terms

Animals
Biosensing Techniques*
Ferroptosis*
Fluorescent Dyes / chemistry
Lipid Droplets / chemistry
Lipid Droplets / metabolism
Mice
Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease* / metabolism

Substances

Fluorescent Dyes