Real-time Imaging of Plant Cell Surface Dynamics with Variable-angle Epifluorescence Microscopy

Summary

The goal of this protocol is to demonstrate how to monitor fluorescently-tagged protein dynamics on plant cell surfaces with variable-angle epifluorescence microscopy, showing blinking dots of GFP-tagged PATROL1, a membrane trafficking protein, in the cell cortex of the stomatal complex in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Abstract

A plant’s cell surface is its interface for perceiving environmental cues; it responds with cell biological changes such as membrane trafficking and cytoskeletal rearrangement. Real-time and high-resolution image analysis of such intracellular events will increase the understanding of plant cell biology at the molecular level. Variable angle epifluorescence microscopy (VAEM) is an emerging technique that provides high-quality, time-lapse images of fluorescently-labeled proteins on the plant cell surface. In this article, practical procedures are described for VAEM specimen preparation, adjustment of the VAEM optical system, movie capturing and image analysis. As an example of VAEM observation, representative results are presented on the dynamics of PATROL1. This is a protein essential for stomatal movement, thought to be involved in proton pump delivery to plasma membranes in the stomatal complex of Arabidopsis thaliana. VAEM real-time observation of guard cells and subsidiary cells in A. thaliana cotyledons showed that fluorescently-tagged PATROL1 appeared as dot-like structures on plasma membranes for several seconds and then disappeared. Kymograph analysis of VAEM movie data determined the time distribution of the presence (termed ‘residence time’) of the dot-like structures. The use of VAEM is discussed in the context of this example.

Introduction

The plant cell surface, including the plasma membrane and its immediately adjacent cytoplasm, is the main region of a plant cell’s perception and integration of biotic and abiotic cues from the extracellular environment. In response to these cues, cell surface components including plasma membrane proteins and the cortical cytoskeleton undergo dynamic changes, on a time scale of seconds to minutes^1-4. Thus, real-time and high-resolution imaging of fluorescent proteins on the cell surface can illuminate a plant’s responses to environmental cues at the molecular level.

Confocal laser scanning microscopy is a powerful too....

Protocol

1. Preparation of Seedlings

1. Sterilize the seeds.
   1. Prepare the sterilization solution by adding 500 µl NaClO (available chlorine: 5.0%) and 1 µl 10% Triton X-100 to 500 µl sterile water.
   2. Place ca. 10 transgenic A. thaliana seeds carrying GFP-PATROL1⁸ into a 1.5-ml tube.
   3. Add 1 ml 70% ethanol solution, and mix well by inverting five times. Leave for 1 min.
   4. Observe the seeds sink to the bottom of the tube. In a clean laminar flow cabinet, gently remove the 70% ethanol using a micropipette, and add 1 ml sterilization solution. Mix well by inverting five times and leave for 5....

Results

In this video article, the protocols for VAEM observation of GFP-PATROL1 in A. thaliana cotyledon stomatal complex cells are provided. Sky drop mounting is a simple preparation method that may help reduce the occurrence of air bubbles in VAEM preparations of A. thaliana cotyledons (Figure 1). Overtilting of the entry laser and/or z-positioning of specimens for VAEM will provide an unclear image. If that happens, it is recommended to start again from a position immediately above the samp.......

Discussion

In this video article, protocols are given for monitoring and measuring the dynamic behavior of GFP-PATROL1 dots on the stomatal complex of Arabidopsis thaliana. As shown here, VAEM observation is a powerful tool for live imaging of plant cell surfaces. Under the experimental conditions used here for GFP-PATROL1 monitoring, there was very little fluorescence photobleaching in the sample used for 1 min of video capture, because the highly sensitive EM-CCD permits the use of a relatively weak excitation laser in V.......

Materials

List of materials used in this article

Name	Company	Catalog Number	Comments
Inverted microscope	Olympus	IX-73
TIRF unit	Olympus	IX3-RFAEVAW
TIRF objective lens	Olympus	UAPON 100 × OTIRF	NA = 1.49
Laser angle control box	Chuo Seiki	QT-AK
Optically pumped semiconductor laser	Coherent	SapphireTM LP USB 488-20 CDRH Laser
510–550 nm band-pass filter	Olympus	U-FBNA
EM CCD camera	Hamamatsu Photonics	ImagEM C9100-13
C-mount camera magnification change unit	Olympus	U-TVCAC
MetaMorph software	Molecular Devices	MetaMorph version 7.7.11.0
TIRF microscopy manual	Olympus	AX7385	Instructions: Total Internal Reflection Illumination System (Printed in Japan on August 24, 2012)
Immersion oil	Olympus	Immersion Oil Typr-F	ne = 1.518 (23 degrees)