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Mitochondria pp 421–430Cite as

Assessing Mitochondrial Potential, Calcium, and Redox State in Isolated Mammalian Cells Using Confocal Microscopy

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Part of the book series: Methods in Molecular Biology™ ((MIMB,volume 372))

Abstract

Mitochondria play a vital role in the regulation of intracellular calcium dynamics. Fluorescent dyes can be used to provide a direct measurement of the redox state, mitochondrial membrane potential, and mitochondrial calcium content. The simplicity of this approach lends itself to high-throughput assays and time-resolved analyses; however, care must be taken to avoid artifactual results. We outline general methods using confocal microscopy for analysis of the redox state, mitochondrial membrane potential, and mitochondrial calcium content in adult cardiomyocytes. We demonstrate how these parameters can be analyzed in parallel using the emission spectra “fingerprinting” method even when emission spectra overlap.

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© 2007 Humana Press Inc., Totowa, NJ

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Davidson, S.M., Yellon, D., Duchen, M.R. (2007). Assessing Mitochondrial Potential, Calcium, and Redox State in Isolated Mammalian Cells Using Confocal Microscopy. In: Leister, D., Herrmann, J.M. (eds) Mitochondria. Methods in Molecular Biology™, vol 372. Humana Press. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-59745-365-3_30

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-59745-365-3_30

  • Publisher Name: Humana Press

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-58829-667-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-59745-365-3

  • eBook Packages: Springer Protocols

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