Fluorescence Multiplexing with Spectral Imaging and Combinatorics.

Ultraviolet-to-infrared fluorescence is a versatile and accessible assay modality but is notoriously hard to multiplex due to overlap of wide emission spectra. We present an approach for fluorescence called multiplexing using spectral imaging and combinatorics (MuSIC). MuSIC consists of creating new independent probes from covalently linked combinations of individual fluorophores, leveraging the wide palette of currently available probes with the mathematical power of combinatorics.

Creating Complex Fluorophore Spectra on Antibodies Through Combinatorial Labeling.

Fluorescently-labeled antibodies are central to many biochemical assays, but they are not easy to multiplex beyond 3-4 colors. A long-term hypothesis of ours is that labeling antibodies with multiple fluorophores, in a way such that fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) occurs, may provide a way to increase fluorescence multiplexing ability by creating a rich variety of complex emission spectra that could be deconvolved via spectral methods. However, it is not yet clear how one can effectively label antibodies with multiple fluorophores that exhibit FRET.

Decreased expression of G-protein coupled receptor kinase 2 in cold thyroid nodules.

G-protein coupled receptor kinases (GRKs) have been shown to regulate the homologous desensitization of different G-protein coupled receptors. We have previously demonstrated that the expression of GRK 3 and 4 is increased in hyperfunctioning thyroid nodules (HTNs) and that GRKs 2, 3, 5 and 6 are able to desensitize the TSHR in vitro. Since cold thyroid nodules (CTNs) and HTNs show different molecular and functional properties, different expression patterns of GRKs in these nodules can be expected.