The application of 'kisser' probes for resolving the distribution and microenvironment of membrane proteins in situ.

Membrane proteins play a lead role in the formation and function of synapses, but, despite revolutions in immunology and molecular genetics, limitations persist in our ability to investigate membrane proteins in the context of an intact synapse. Here, we introduce a simple but novel approach to resolving the distribution of endogenous membrane proteins in either live or fixed tissues. The technique involves transgenic expression of a protein with an extracellular tag, a generic transmembrane domain, and an intracellular terminus that mimics the intracellular anchoring motifs of the endogenous protein of interest.