Counting growth factors in single cells with infrared quantum dots to measure discrete stimulation distributions
Abstract
The distribution of single-cell properties across a population of cells can be measured using diverse tools, but no technology directly quantifies the biochemical stimulation events regulating these properties. Here we report digital counting of growth factors in single cells using fluorescent quantum dots and calibrated three-dimensional deconvolution microscopy (QDC-3DM) to reveal physiologically relevant cell stimulation distributions. We calibrate the fluorescence intensities of individual compact quantum dots labeled with epidermal growth factor (EGF) and demonstrate the necessity of near-infrared emission to overcome intrinsic cellular autofluoresence at the single-molecule level. When applied to human triple-negative breast cancer cells, we observe proportionality between stimulation and both receptor internalization and inhibitor response, reflecting stimulation heterogeneity contributions to intrinsic variability. We anticipate that QDC-3DM can be applied to analyze any peptidic ligand to reveal single-cell correlations between external stimulation and phenotypic variability, cell fate, and drug response.
References
Expression of epidermal growth factor in human tissues. Immunohistochemical and biochemical analysis
Crystal structure of the complex of human epidermal growth factor and receptor extracellular domains
Citations
Zwitterion and Oligo(ethylene glycol) Synergy Minimizes Nonspecific Binding of Compact Quantum Dots.
Short-Wave Infrared Quantum Dots with Compact Sizes as Molecular Probes for Fluorescence Microscopy.
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