Imaging mRNA in Vivo, from Birth to Death

Evelina Tutucci; Nathan M. Livingston; Robert H. Singer; Bin Wu

doi:10.1146/annurev-biophys-070317-033037

Imaging mRNA in Vivo, from Birth to Death

Evelina Tutucci, Nathan M. Livingston, Robert H. Singer, Bin Wu

Research output: Contribution to Journal › Review article › Academic › peer-review

Abstract

RNA is the fundamental information transfer system in the cell. The ability to follow single messenger RNAs (mRNAs) from transcription to degradation with fluorescent probes gives quantitative information about how the information is transferred from DNA to proteins. This review focuses on the latest technological developments in the field of single-mRNA detection and their usage to study gene expression in both fixed and live cells. By describing the application of these imaging tools, we follow the journey of mRNA from transcription to decay in single cells, with single-molecule resolution. We review current theoretical models for describing transcription and translation that were generated by single-molecule and single-cell studies. These methods provide a basis to study how single-molecule interactions generate phenotypes, fundamentally changing our understating of gene expression regulation.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	85-106
Number of pages	22
Journal	Annual Review of Biophysics
Volume	47
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-biophys-070317-033037
Publication status	Published - 20 May 2018
Externally published	Yes

Funding

This work was supported by NIH Grant GM57071 to R.H.S. E.T. was supported by Swiss National Science Foundation Fellowships P2GEP3_155692 and P300PA_164717. N.M.L. was supported by NIH Training Grant T32 GM007445.

Funders	Funder number
National Institutes of Health	GM57071
National Institute of General Medical Sciences	T32GM007445
Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung	P300PA_164717, P2GEP3_155692, T32 GM007445

Keywords

gene expression
imaging
kinetics
single-cell
single-molecule
single-mRNA imaging

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10.1146/annurev-biophys-070317-033037

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title = "Imaging mRNA in Vivo, from Birth to Death",

abstract = "RNA is the fundamental information transfer system in the cell. The ability to follow single messenger RNAs (mRNAs) from transcription to degradation with fluorescent probes gives quantitative information about how the information is transferred from DNA to proteins. This review focuses on the latest technological developments in the field of single-mRNA detection and their usage to study gene expression in both fixed and live cells. By describing the application of these imaging tools, we follow the journey of mRNA from transcription to decay in single cells, with single-molecule resolution. We review current theoretical models for describing transcription and translation that were generated by single-molecule and single-cell studies. These methods provide a basis to study how single-molecule interactions generate phenotypes, fundamentally changing our understating of gene expression regulation.",

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AU - Livingston, Nathan M.

AU - Singer, Robert H.

AU - Wu, Bin

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N2 - RNA is the fundamental information transfer system in the cell. The ability to follow single messenger RNAs (mRNAs) from transcription to degradation with fluorescent probes gives quantitative information about how the information is transferred from DNA to proteins. This review focuses on the latest technological developments in the field of single-mRNA detection and their usage to study gene expression in both fixed and live cells. By describing the application of these imaging tools, we follow the journey of mRNA from transcription to decay in single cells, with single-molecule resolution. We review current theoretical models for describing transcription and translation that were generated by single-molecule and single-cell studies. These methods provide a basis to study how single-molecule interactions generate phenotypes, fundamentally changing our understating of gene expression regulation.

AB - RNA is the fundamental information transfer system in the cell. The ability to follow single messenger RNAs (mRNAs) from transcription to degradation with fluorescent probes gives quantitative information about how the information is transferred from DNA to proteins. This review focuses on the latest technological developments in the field of single-mRNA detection and their usage to study gene expression in both fixed and live cells. By describing the application of these imaging tools, we follow the journey of mRNA from transcription to decay in single cells, with single-molecule resolution. We review current theoretical models for describing transcription and translation that were generated by single-molecule and single-cell studies. These methods provide a basis to study how single-molecule interactions generate phenotypes, fundamentally changing our understating of gene expression regulation.

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Imaging mRNA in Vivo, from Birth to Death

Abstract

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Keywords

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