Name: characterizing single-molecule conformational changes under shear flow with fluorescence microscopy
Uploaded: 2020-01-25T14:00:00
Description: Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Characterizing Single-Molecule Conformational Changes Under Shear Flow with Fluorescence Microscopy at JoVE.com

This work was supported in part by a National Science Foundation grant DMS-1463234, National Institutes of Health grants HL082808 and AI133634, and Lehigh University internal funding.

1. Preparing VWF
<ol>
	<li>Reconstitute human plasma VWF to prepare it for the labeling reactions. Add 100 &#181;L of deionized (DI) water to 100 &#181;g of lyophilized VWF to create a 1 mg/mL VWF stock solution.</li>
	<li>Dialyze VWF stock solution in order to remove excess glycine, thereby increasing the biotin and fluorophore labeling efficiency.
	<ol>
		<li>Transfer 50 &#181;L of VWF stock solution into a 0.1 mL dialysis unit with a 10,000 molecular weight cut-off and seal with a cap. Store the remaining stock solu...

<ol>
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To obtain high quality data of single-molecule conformational changes using fluorescence microscopy as described in this method, it is critical to incubate the molecule for the appropriate amount of time, minimize its nonspecific interactions with the surface and establish microscope settings that reduce photobleaching. The ability of the molecule to freely change conformation is related to the number of biotin-streptavidin interactions formed between the molecule and the surface. As mentioned previously, this must be co...

Mechanisms of how biomolecules respond to environmental stimuli have been studied widely. In a flow environment in particular, shear and elongational forces regulate the conformational changes and potentially the function of biomolecules. Typical examples include shear-induced unraveling of lambda DNA and von Willebrand factor (VWF). Lambda DNA has been used as a tool to understand conformational dynamics of individual, flexible polymer chains and the rheology of polymer solutions1,2,3,4. VWF is a natural flow sensor that aggregates platelets at wound sites of blood vessels with abnormal shear rates and flow patterns. Unraveling of VWF is essential in activating the binding of platelets to the A1 domain and collagen binding to the A3 domain. In addition, high shear-induced A2 domain unfolding allows the cleavage of VWF, which regulates its molecular weight distribution in circulation5,6. Thus, direct visualization of how these molecules behave under flow can greatly enhance our fundamental understanding of their biomechanics and function, which in turn can enable novel diagnostic and therapeutic applications.
Typical methodologies to characterize single-molecule conformations include optical/magnetic tweezers, atomic force microscopy (AFM) and single-molecule F&#246;rster resonance energy transfer (FRET)7. Single-molecule force spectroscopy is a powerful tool to investigate the force and motion associated with the conformational changes of biomolecules. However, it lacks the ability to map overall molecular conformations8. AFM is capable of imaging with high spatial resolution but is limited in temporal resolution9,10. In addition, contact between the tip and the sample may confound the response induced by flow. Other methods like FRET and nanopore analytics determine single-molecule protein folding and unfolding states based on the detection of intramolecular distance and excluded volumes. However, these methods are still in their infancy and limited in their direct observation of single-molecule conformations11,12,13,14.
On the other hand, directly observing macromolecules with high temporal and spatial resolution under fluorescence microscopy has improved our understanding of single-molecule dynamics in many biological processes15,16. For example, Fu et al. recently achieved simultaneous visualization of VWF elongation and platelet receptor binding for the first time. In their work, VWF molecules were immobilized on the surface of a microfluidic channel through biotin-streptavidin interactions and imaged under total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF) microscopy at varying shear flow environments17. Applying a similar method as Fu&#39;s, we here demonstrate that conformations of VWF and lambda DNA can be directly observed under both TIRF and confocal fluorescence microscopy. As shown in Figure 1, microfluidic devices are used to create and control shear flow, and biomolecules are immobilized on the channel surface. Upon the application of varying shear rates, conformations of the same molecule are recorded to measure the extensional length, also shown in Figure 1. The method could be widely applied to explore other polymer behaviors under complex flow environments for both rheological and biological studies.

<table border="1" fo:keep-together.within-page="1" fo:keep-with-next.within-page="always">
	<tbody>
		<tr>
			<td>Alexa Fluor 488 Labeling Kit</td>
			<td>Invitrogen</td>
			<td>A30006</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Bio-Spin P-6 Gel Columns</td>
			<td>Bio-Rad</td>
			<td>7326221</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Biotin</td>
			<td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td>B4501</td>
			<td>Use as free biotin in Step 5.6</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Biotin-14-dCTP</td>
			<td>AAT Bioquest</td>
			<td>17019</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>BSA-Biotin</td>
			<td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td>A8549</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Coverslips</td>
			<td>VWR</td>
			<td>48393-195</td>
			<td>No. 1 &#189;, 22 x 50 mm</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>dNTP Set</td>
			<td>Invitrogen</td>
			<td>10297018</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Float Buoys for Mini Dialysis Device</td>
			<td>Thermo Scientific</td>
			<td>69588</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Klenow Fragment (3&#39;&#8594;5&#39; exo-)</td>
			<td>New England BioLabs</td>
			<td>M0212S</td>
			<td>Use for 10X reaction buffer in Step 2.1.1 and 1X reaction buffer in Step 2.2.2</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Lambda DNA</td>
			<td>New England BioLabs</td>
			<td>N3011S</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Mini Dialysis Device</td>
			<td>Thermo Scientific</td>
			<td>69570</td>
			<td>10K MWCO, 0.1 mL volume</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>NEBuffer 4</td>
			<td>New England BioLabs</td>
			<td>B7004S</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>NHS-PEG4-Biotin</td>
			<td>Thermo Scientific</td>
			<td>21330</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Protocatechuate 3,4-Dioxygenase</td>
			<td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td>P8279</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Protocatechuic acid</td>
			<td>Santa Cruz Biotechnology</td>
			<td>sc-205818</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Silicone Elastomer Kit for PDMS Fabrication</td>
			<td>The Dow Chemical Company</td>
			<td>4019862</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Streptavidin</td>
			<td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td>85878</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>The Blocking Solution</td>
			<td>CANDOR Bioscience</td>
			<td>110 050</td>
			<td>Use as casein blocking solution throughout protocol</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Vinyl Cleanroom Tape</td>
			<td>Fisher Scientific</td>
			<td>19-120-3217</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>von Willebrand Factor, Human Plasma</td>
			<td>Millipore Sigma</td>
			<td>681300</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>YOYO-1 Dye</td>
			<td>AAT Bioquest</td>
			<td>17580</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>0.25 mm Inner Diameter Tubing</td>
			<td>Cole-Parmer</td>
			<td>EW-06419-00</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>25 Gauge Needle</td>
			<td>Thomas Scientific</td>
			<td>JG2505X</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

characterizing single-molecule conformational changes under shear flow with fluorescence microscopy

Single-molecule behavior under mechanical perturbation has been characterized widely to understand many biological processes. However, methods such as atomic force microscopy have limited temporal resolution, while F&#246;rster resonance energy transfer (FRET) only allow conformations to be inferred. Fluorescence microscopy, on the other hand, allows real-time in situ visualization of single molecules in various flow conditions. Our protocol describes the steps to capture conformational changes of single biomolecules under different shear flow environments using fluorescence microscopy. The shear flow is created inside microfluidic channels and controlled by a syringe pump. As demonstrations of the method, von Willebrand factor (VWF) and lambda DNA are labeled with biotin and fluorophore and then immobilized on the channel surface. Their conformations are continuously monitored under variable shear flow using total internal reflection (TIRF) and confocal fluorescence microscopy. The reversible unraveling dynamics of VWF are useful for understanding how its function is regulated in human blood, while the conformation of lambda DNA offers insights into the biophysics of macromolecules. The protocol can also be widely applied to study the behavior of polymers, especially biopolymers, in varying flow conditions and to investigate the rheology of complex fluids.

Observing the dynamic behavior of biomolecules such as VWF and lambda DNA is highly dependent on optimizing their binding to the device surface. Incubating surface treatments for the recommended times in the microfluidic device is crucial to obtaining binding with a few anchorage points, so that molecules can freely extend and relax upon changing flow. If the proteins or DNA are bound too strongly with multiple linkages, they will either extend to limited lengths or not extend at all. This occurs particularly with VWF wh...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Characterizing Single-Molecule Conformational Changes Under Shear Flow with Fluorescence Microscopy at JoVE.com

Characterizing Single-Molecule Conformational Changes Under Shear Flow with Fluorescence Microscopy

We present a protocol for immobilizing single macromolecules in microfluidic devices and quantifying changes in their conformations under shear flow. This protocol is useful for characterizing the biomechanical and functional properties of biomolecules such as proteins and DNA in a flow environment.

Single-molecule behavior under mechanical perturbation has been characterized widely to understand many biological processes. However, methods such as ...

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