Synthetic Biology Journal ›› 2022, Vol. 3 ›› Issue (2): 369-384.DOI: 10.12211/2096-8280.2021-060

• Invited Review • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Synthetic biology for fluorescent bioimaging

Weihong WU1, Wei LI2, Xian’en ZHANG3, Zongqiang CUI2   

  1. 1.Division of Life Sciences and Medicine,University of Science and Technology of China,Hefei 230026,Anhui,China
    2.State Key Laboratory of Virology,Wuhan Institute of Virology,Chinese Academy of Sciences,Wuhan 430071,Hubei,China
    3.National Key Laboratory of Biomacromolecules,Institute of Biophysics,Chinese Academy of Sciences,Beijing 100101,China
  • Received:2021-05-13 Revised:2021-09-06 Online:2022-05-11 Published:2022-04-30
  • Contact: Zongqiang CUI

合成生物学与荧光成像技术

武伟红1, 李炜2, 张先恩3, 崔宗强2   

  1. 1.中国科学技术大学生命科学与医学部,安徽 合肥 230026
    2.中国科学院武汉病毒研究所,病毒学国家重点实验室,湖北 武汉 430071
    3.中国科学院生物物理研究所,生物大分子国家重点实验室,北京 100101
  • 通讯作者: 崔宗强
  • 作者简介:武伟红(1998—),女,硕士研究生。研究方向为病毒与合成生物学。 E-mail:wuweihong@mail.ustc.edu.cn
    崔宗强(1977—),男,研究员,博士生导师。研究方向为病毒学研究新技术如单病毒示踪、纳米疫苗等。创建了多种荧光纳米标记及单病毒示踪新技术,实时示踪了单个艾滋病毒、单个流感病毒脱壳过程,并实现了单拷贝艾滋病毒基因原位成像、多蛋白复合体超高分辨成像等。 E-mail:czq@wh.iov.cn
  • 基金资助:
    国家自然科学基金(31925025)

Abstract:

The rapid development of synthetic biology provides new opportunities for fluorescent bioimaging. Fluorescence imaging plays an important role in the visualization of biomolecules inside cells. Traditional visualization research methods have many disadvantages, such as the influence of excessive molecular weight of traditional fluorescent protein on the research object, and the low resolution of traditional fluorescence imaging observation system. The application of synthetic biology can develop new fluorescent nanomaterials, which have various advantages such as high stability, low toxicity and so on, and can be more widely used in cell internal visualization. Based on the principles of synthetic biology, we can establish new methods of material biosynthesis, develop fluorescent nanomaterials and probes with excellent performance, and develop new fluorescence imaging technologies. In the field of fluorescent biological imaging, synthetic biology mainly involves the design and synthesis of fluorescent materials, site-specific modification and labeling of biological target molecules, and controllable coupling of fluorescent probes and other macromolecules in different spatial relations. These novel fluorescent materials and molecular labeling techniques could be applied to molecular imaging and single particle tracking to explore intracellular molecular dynamic mechanisms. And new fluorescent nanomaterials developed in synthetic biology also can be used to tag different parts of viruses to trace the mechanism of their invasion so as to reveal pathogen infection and pathogenesis. This review summarizes advances of the synthetic biotechnology and the application in fluorescent imaging, including the synthesis of fluorescent nanomaterials and probes such as quantum dots, accurate labeling of proteins and nucleic acids, and the application in virus fluorescence imaging and tracing. We also discuss some existing problems and prospects in the field, such as controllable synthesis of fluorescent heterozygous biomaterials and multiple molecular labeling in situ. Synthetic biology has great development potential in the next decade. The multidisciplinary fusion of synthetic biology and fluorescence imaging technology will promote the development and progress of fluorescence imaging technology and expand the research field of biosynthesis.

Key words: synthetic biology, biological probes, molecular labeling, fluorescent imaging, virus tracing

摘要:

合成生物学的迅速发展为分子荧光标记与生物成像技术提供了新的机遇。基于合成生物学原理,可以建立材料生物合成新方法,开发性能优异的荧光纳米材料和探针,发展新的荧光成像技术。合成生物学应用于生物荧光成像,多涉及荧光材料与探针的设计合成、对生物靶标分子进行定点改造和修饰、荧光探针和靶标分子的可控时空耦合等以实现生物分子的精准特异性标记。这些荧光纳米材料和生物分子标记技术可应用于细胞内分子的荧光标记、成像和动态示踪,可视化解析相关的关键分子事件,从而深入揭示细胞内分子运动机制和病原致病机理等。本文主要综述了近年来合成生物学技术在生物荧光成像方面的应用,包括利用合成生物学技术合成量子点等荧光纳米材料与探针、对蛋白质和核酸分子的精准标记及其用于病毒荧光成像和示踪。最后,也对该领域面临的问题如荧光杂合生物材料可控合成、分子原位多重标记等进行了探讨和展望。合成生物学与荧光成像技术的交叉融合,将推动荧光成像技术发展和进步,并拓展合成生物学的研究领域。

关键词: 合成生物学, 生物探针, 分子标记, 荧光成像, 病毒示踪

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