Gold and silver plasmonic nanoprobes trace the positions of histone codes

• Published in: BMB reports Vol. 55; no. 3; pp. 111 - 112
• Main Authors: Choi, Inhee, Song, Jihwan, Park, Hyunsung
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: Korean
• Published: 생화학분자생물학회 31-03-2022
• Subjects: Heterochromatin; Histone modification; Oncogene-induced senescence; Plasmonic coupling effect; Plasmonic nanoparticles; Single-cell imaging; Singlecell imaging; Histone modification; Heterochromatin; Oncogene-induced senescence; Plasmonic coupling effect; Plasmonic nanoparticles
• ISSN: 1976-6696; 1976-670X

We visualized the distribution of heterochromatin in a single nucleus using plasmonic nanoparticle-conjugated H3K9me3 and H3K27me3 antibodies. Due to distance-dependent plasmonic coupling effects between nanoprobes, their scattering spectra shift to longer wavelengths as the distance between heterochromatin histone markers reduced during oncogene-induced senescence (OIS). These observations were supported by simulating scattering profiles based on considerations of particle numbers, interparticle distances, and the spatial arrangements of plasmonic nanoprobes. Using this plasmon-based colourimetric imaging, we estimated changes in distances between H3K9me3 and H3K27me3 during the formation of senescence-associated heterochromatin foci in OIS cells. We anticipate that the devised analytical technique combined with high-spatial imaging and spectral simulation will eventually lead to a new means of diagnosing and monitoring disease progression and cellular senescence. [BMB Reports: Perspective 2022; 55(3): 111-112]