Single and three-color flow cytometry assay for intracellular zinc ion availability in human lymphocytes with Zinpyr-1 and double immunofluorescence: relationship with metallothioneins.

Background: : The amount of available intracellular zinc is pivotal to regulate many cellular processes, including oxidative stress response and apoptotic mechanisms. Therefore it is not surprising that zinc homeostasis and dyshomeostasis is involved in many physiological and pathological states, respectively. Cell permeable zinc probes allow intracellular applications with microscopy technology, but flow cytometry (FC) applications have been scarcely explored, albeit they can be suited to study zinc homeostasis in different cell types, including rare cells.