Section of Virology, Department of Clinical Microbiology, Umeå University, 901 85 Umeå, Sweden.
Wallenberg Centre for Molecular Medicine, Umeå University, 901 85 Umeå, Sweden.
Anal Chem. 2020 Dec 1;92(23):15336-15343. doi: 10.1021/acs.analchem.0c02271. Epub 2020 Nov 12.
Research in the field of extracellular vesicles is rapidly expanding and finding footholds in many areas of medical science. However, the availability of methodologies to quantify the concentration of membrane material present in a sample remains limited. Herein, we present a novel approach for the quantification of vesicle material, specifically the quantification of the total lipid membrane surface area, found in a sample using Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET). In this assay, sonication is used to drive the fusion between vesicles in the sample to be quantified and liposomes containing a pair of FRET fluorophores. The change in emission spectrum upon vesicle fusion is directly related to the total membrane surface area of the sample added, and a calibration curve allows for the quantification of a variety of vesicle species, including enveloped viruses, bacterial outer membrane vesicles, and mammalian extracellular vesicles. Without extensive optimization of experimental parameters, we were able to quantify down to ∼10 vesicles/mL, using as little as 60 μL of the sample. The assay precision was comparable to that of a commercial nanoparticle tracking analysis system. While its limit of detection was slightly higher, the FRET assay is superior for the detection of small vesicles, as its performance is vesicle-size-independent. Taken together, the FRET assay is a simple, robust, and versatile method for the quantification of a variety of purified vesicle samples.
细胞外囊泡领域的研究正在迅速发展,并在医学科学的许多领域找到了立足点。然而,用于定量样品中存在的膜材料浓度的方法仍然有限。在此,我们提出了一种新的方法来定量囊泡材料,特别是使用荧光共振能量转移(FRET)定量样品中总脂质膜表面积的方法。在该测定中,超声处理用于驱动待定量样品中的囊泡融合和含有一对 FRET 荧光团的脂质体。囊泡融合后发射光谱的变化与加入样品的总膜表面积直接相关,校准曲线允许定量各种囊泡种类,包括包膜病毒、细菌外膜囊泡和哺乳动物细胞外囊泡。无需对实验参数进行广泛优化,我们就能够使用少至 60 μL 的样品定量低至约 10 个囊泡/mL。该测定的精密度与商业纳米颗粒跟踪分析系统相当。虽然其检测限略高,但 FRET 测定法更适合检测小囊泡,因为其性能与囊泡大小无关。总的来说,FRET 测定法是一种简单、稳健且通用的方法,可用于定量各种纯化的囊泡样品。