Intracellular oxygen measurements of mouse liver cells using quantitative fluorescence video microscopy.

Our currently developed fluorescence video microscope can measure fluorescence intensities with an error of +/- 1.5% of full scale in 65536 different positions of a microscope field. With a video frame freeze acquisition time of 33 ms, time-dependent changes of this order of time or slower can be followed. Using cells which have absorbed pyrene-1-butyrate to an intracellular concentration of 0.05 to 1 mM, the changes in fluorescence intensity with oxygen concentration are easily measured. The spatial resolution for data collection is 0.5 micron when a 54X objective is used. The individual Stern-Volmer quenching constants of each individual pixel were measured for agar slices and mouse liver cells treated with pyrenebutyric acid. The distribution of quenching constants for agar follows a normal curve about a mean value of 16 . 10(-4) torr-1. The data for mouse liver cells gave a non-normal distribution of quenching constants with a mean value of 18 . 10(-4) torr-1. The greater spread of the data from cells is interpreted as evidence for a real biological variation in the solubility coefficient of oxygen in different locations within the cell. In all the cells examined, this distribution has been observed to be non-random and appears to be associated with specific cell structures.