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Chemical labeling strategies for cell biology

Nature Methods volume 3, pages 591–596 (2006)Cite this article

Abstract

Methods to visualize, track, measure and perturb proteins in living cells are central to biomedicine's efforts to characterize and understand the spatial and temporal underpinnings of life inside cells. Although fluorescent proteins have revolutionized such studies, they have shortcomings, which have spurred the creation of alternative approaches to chemically label proteins in live cells. In this review we highlight research questions that can be addressed using site-specific chemical labeling and present a comparison of the various labeling techniques that have been developed. We also provide a 'roadmap' for selection of appropriate labeling techniques(s) and outline generalized strategies to validate and troubleshoot chemical labeling experiments.

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Figure 1: Strategies for chemical labeling of proteins in cells.
Figure 2: Factors that affect the choice of chemical labeling technique.
Figure 3: Troubleshooting scheme for chemical labeling experiments.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Baxter Laboratory in Genetic Pharmacology, Stanford University, Stanford, 94305, California, USA

    Kevin M Marks & Garry P Nolan

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  1. Kevin M Marks
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Correspondence to Garry P Nolan.

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Marks, K., Nolan, G. Chemical labeling strategies for cell biology. Nat Methods 3, 591–596 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1038/nmeth906

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