Scientists developed a nano-thermometer that can measure internal temperatures within cells. The methodology uses the properties of a modified molecular rotor and the viscosity of the cell. This technology can be applied to determine your cancer treatment’s effects, where intense heat is used to destroy tumors.
The paper on a the nano-thermometer was written by the physicist Angel Marti in the research group’s laboratory. The laboratory team developed a biocompatible molecular rotor known as boron dipyrromethene (NANO-DIPY) to introduce the temperature in a single cell.
The fluorescence of BIODIPY in living cells use the environment around them like temperature and viscosity and lasts only a little. Depending on the temperature and the viscosity of the environment, the fluorescence lifetime varies.
Because the technique depends on the rotor, Martí and Rice graduate student and lead author Meredith Ogle constrained the rotor to go back and forth, like the flywheel in a watch, rather than letting it rotate fully.
“If the environment is a bit more viscous, the molecule will rotate slower,” Martí said. “That doesn’t necessarily mean it’s colder or hotter, just that the viscosity of the environment is different.”
It means that the light turns off at a certain rate at a specified temperature, which can be viewed with a fluorescent-lifetime imaging microscope.
“We found out that if we constrain the rotation of this motor, then at high viscosities, the internal clock — the lifetime of this molecule — becomes completely independent of viscosity,” he said. “This is not particularly common for these kind of probes.”
The method depends on a rotor which is dependent on a team. The rotor must be made to turn like a flywheel in a watch, but compared to letting it rotate fully, it was constricted to do so. They calculate when the molecule is in a strong energy level, which depends on the object’s speed. The rotor wobbles faster, when the temperature increases, .
Full details of the work appear in the Journal of Physical Chemistry B.
Sources:
www.sciencedaily.com
news.rice.edu
www.nanowerk.com
