Yung-Shin Sun

Effect of Fluorescently Labeling Protein Probes on Kinetics of Protein-Ligand Reactions

We study the kinetic effect of extrinsic fluorescent labeling agents on protein-ligand binding affinity and find that the kinetics is related to the loss or change of protein function when proteins are fluorescent-labeled.

A novel high-throughput scanning microscope for label-free detection of protein and small-molecule chemical microarrays

We describe a novel scanning optical microscope based on a polarization-modulated nulling ellipsometry. The new microscope employs a combination of scanning mirror and sample translation and thus enables high-throughput label-free detection of biomolecular microarrays with more than 10 000 protein or small-molecule targets. For illustration, we show the image of a 2760-spot protein microarray on a functionalized glass slide obtained with such a microscope. The new scanning microscope is also capable of determining, in parallel, the real-time binding kinetics of multiple molecular species under aqueous conditions.

Macromolecular scaffolds for immobilizing small molecule microarrays in label-free detection of protein-ligand interactions on solid support

We explored two macromolecular scaffolds, bovine serum albumin (BSA) and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), as chemically complementary platforms for immobilizing small molecule compounds on functionalized glass slides. We conjugated biotin molecules to BSA and amine-derivatized PVA and subsequently immobilized the conjugates on epoxy-functionalized glass slides through reaction of free amine residues on BSA and PVA with surface-bound epoxy groups. We studied binding reactions of such immobilized small molecule targets with solution-phase protein probes using an oblique-incidence reflectivity difference scanning optical microscope. The results showed that both BSA and amine-derivatized PVA were effective and efficient as carriers of small molecules with NHS residues and fluoric residues and for immobilization on epoxy-coated solid surfaces. A significant fraction of the conjugated small molecules retain their innate chemical activity.

Screening small-molecule compound microarrays for protein ligands without fluorescence labeling with a high-throughput scanning microscope

We describe a high-throughput scanning optical microscope for detecting small-molecule compound microarrays on functionalized glass slides. It is based on measurements of oblique-incidence reflectivity difference and employs a combination of a y-scan galvometer mirror and an x-scan translation stage with an effective field of view of 2 cm x 4 cm. Such a field of view can accommodate a printed small-molecule compound microarray with as many as 10,000 to 20,000 targets. The scanning microscope is capable of measuring kinetics as well as endpoints of protein-ligand reactions simultaneously. We present the experimental results on solution-phase protein reactions with small-molecule compound microarrays synthesized from one-bead, one-compound combinatorial chemistry and immobilized on a streptavidin-functionalized glass slide.

Effects of shear stresses and antioxidant concentrations on the production of reactive oxygen species in lung cancer cells

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are known to be a key factor in the development of cancer, and many exogenous sources are supposed to be related to the formation of ROS. In this paper, a microfluidic chip was developed for studying the production of ROS in lung cancer cells under different chemical and physical stimuli. This chip has two unique features: (1) five relative concentrations of 0, 1/8, 1/2, 7/8, and 1 are achieved in the culture regions; (2) a shear stress gradient is produced inside each of the five culture areas. Lung cancer cells were seeded inside this biocompatible chip for investigating their response to different concentrations of H2O2, a chemical stimulus known to increase the production of ROS. Then the effect of shear stress, a physical stimulus, on lung cancer cells was examined, showing that the production of ROS was increased in response to a larger shear stress. Finally, two antioxidants, α-tocopherol and ferulic acid, were used to study their effects on reducing ROS. It was found that high-dose α-tocopherol was not able to effectively eliminate the ROS produced inside cells. This counter effect was not observed in cells cultured in a traditional chamber slide, where no shear stress was present. This result suggests that the current microfluidic chip provides an in vitro platform best mimicking the physiological condition where cells are under circulating conditions.

Correlation between cell migration and reactive oxygen species under electric field stimulation

Cell migration is an essential process involved in the development and maintenance of multicellular organisms. Electric fields (EFs) are one of the many physical and chemical factors known to affect cell migration, a phenomenon termed electrotaxis or galvanotaxis. In this paper, a microfluidics chip was developed to study the migration of cells under different electrical and chemical stimuli. This chip is capable of providing four different strengths of EFs in combination with two different chemicals via one simple set of agar salt bridges and Ag/AgCl electrodes. NIH 3T3 fibroblasts were seeded inside this chip to study their migration and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production in response to different EF strengths and the presence of β-lapachone. We found that both the EF and β-lapachone level increased the cell migration rate and the production of ROS in an EF-strength-dependent manner. A strong linear correlation between the cell migration rate and the amount of intracellular ROS suggests that ROS are an intermediate product by which EF and β-lapachone enhance cell migration. Moreover, an anti-oxidant, α-tocopherol, was found to quench the production of ROS, resulting in a decrease in the migration rate.

Label-free detection of surface markers on stem cells by oblique-incidence reflectivity difference microscopy

Conventional fluorescence microscopy is routinely used to detect cell surface markers through fluorophore-conjugated antibodies. However, fluorophore-conjugation of antibodies alters binding properties such as strength and specificity of the antibody in often uncharacterized ways. Here we present a method using an oblique-incidence reflectivity difference (OI-RD) microscope for label-free, real-time detection of cell surface markers, and apply it to analysis of stage-specific embryonic antigen 1 (SSEA1) on stem cells. Mouse stem cells express SSEA1 on their surfaces, and the level of SSEA1 decreases when the cells start to differentiate. In this study, we immobilized mouse stem cells and non-stem cells (control) on a glass surface as a microarray and reacted the cell microarray with unlabeled SSEA1 antibodies. By monitoring the reaction with an OI-RD microscope in real time, we confirmed that the SSEA1 antibodies bind only to the surface of the stem cells and not to the surface of non-stem cells. From the binding curves, we determined the equilibrium dissociation constant (Kd) of the antibody with the SSEA1 markers on the stem cell surface. Thus, the OI-RD microscope can be used to detect binding affinities between cell surface markers and unlabeled antibodies bound to the cells; this information could be useful for determination of stem cell stages.

Label-free optical detection of small-molecule compound microarrays immobilized on solid support using macromolecular scaffolds and subsequent protein binding reactions

Small-molecule microarrays composed of tens of thousands of distinct synthetic molecules, natural products, and their combinations/modifications provide a high-throughput platform for studying protein-ligand interactions. Immobilization of small molecule compounds on solid supports remains a challenge as widely varied small molecules generally lack unique chemical groups that readily react with singly or even multiply functionalized solid support. We explored two strategies for immobilizing small molecule compounds on epoxy-functionalized glass surface using primary-aminecontaining macromolecular scaffolds: bovine serum albumin (BSA) and amine-modified poly-vinyl alcohol (PVA). Small molecules with N-hydroxysuccinimide (NHS) groups were conjugated to BSA or amine-modified PVA. Small-molecule-BSA conjugates and small-molecule-PVA conjugates were subsequently immobilized on epoxy-functionalized glass slides through amine-epoxy reactions. Using an oblique-incidence reflectivity difference (OI-RD) scanning microscope as a label-free detector, we performed a comparative study of the effectiveness of BSA and PVA as macromolecular scaffolds for anchoring small molecule compounds in terms of conjugation efficiency, surface immobilization efficiency, effect of the scaffold on end-point and kinetics of subsequent binding reactions with protein probes.

High-Throughput Endpoint and Real-Time Detection of Biochemical Reactions in Microarrays Using Label-Free Oblique-Incidence Reflectivity Difference Microscopes

We describe recently developed oblique-incidence reflectivity difference microscopes, a form of polarization-modulated imaging ellipsometry, for label-free detection of biochemical reactions in microarrays. Configurations enabling high-throughput endpoint and real-time detection on glass substrates are discussed.

A Wound-Healing Assay Based on Ultraviolet Light Ablation.

Collective cell migration plays important roles in many physiological processes such as embryonic development, tissue repair, and angiogenesis. A “wound” occurs when epithelial cells are lost and/or damaged due to some external factors, and collective cell migration takes place in the following wound-healing process. To study this cellular behavior, various kinds of wound-healing assays are developed. In these assays, a “wound,” or a “cell-free region,” is created in a cell monolayer mechanically, chemically, optically, or electrically. These assays are useful tools in studying the effects of certain physical or chemical stimuli on the wound-healing process. Most of these methods have disadvantages such as creating wounds of different sizes or shapes, yielding batch-to-batch variation, and damaging the coating of the cell culture surface. In this study, we used ultraviolet (UV) lights to selectively kill cells and create a wound out of a cell monolayer. A comparison between the current assay and the traditional scratch assay was made, indicating that these two methods resulted in similar wound-healing rates. The advantages of this UV-created wound-healing assay include fast and easy procedure, high throughput, and no direct contact to cells.