Biomaterial Database

Histochemical detection of lipid droplets in cultured cells. 2013

Michitaka Suzuki, and Yuki Shinohara, and Toyoshi Fujimoto

Department of Anatomy and Molecular Cell Biology, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan.

Cells store excess lipid as esters in the form of triglycerides and cholesterol esters. Most lipid esters are compartmentalized in globular structures called lipid droplets. Here we describe several methods of detecting lipid droplets by fluorescence microscopy. Lipid droplets can be visualized either by staining the lipid ester core using fluorescent dyes or by labeling lipid droplet-specific proteins using antibodies. The intracellular distribution of lipid droplets can be analyzed without much difficulty by these methods, but care must be taken to avoid certain pitfalls.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D008055	Lipids	A generic term for fats and lipoids, the alcohol-ether-soluble constituents of protoplasm, which are insoluble in water. They comprise the fats, fatty oils, essential oils, waxes, phospholipids, glycolipids, sulfolipids, aminolipids, chromolipids (lipochromes), and fatty acids. (Grant & Hackh's Chemical Dictionary, 5th ed)	Lipid
D008565	Membrane Proteins	Proteins which are found in membranes including cellular and intracellular membranes. They consist of two types, peripheral and integral proteins. They include most membrane-associated enzymes, antigenic proteins, transport proteins, and drug, hormone, and lectin receptors.	Cell Membrane Protein,Cell Membrane Proteins,Cell Surface Protein,Cell Surface Proteins,Integral Membrane Proteins,Membrane-Associated Protein,Surface Protein,Surface Proteins,Integral Membrane Protein,Membrane Protein,Membrane-Associated Proteins,Membrane Associated Protein,Membrane Associated Proteins,Membrane Protein, Cell,Membrane Protein, Integral,Membrane Proteins, Integral,Protein, Cell Membrane,Protein, Cell Surface,Protein, Integral Membrane,Protein, Membrane,Protein, Membrane-Associated,Protein, Surface,Proteins, Cell Membrane,Proteins, Cell Surface,Proteins, Integral Membrane,Proteins, Membrane,Proteins, Membrane-Associated,Proteins, Surface,Surface Protein, Cell
D008856	Microscopy, Fluorescence	Microscopy of specimens stained with fluorescent dye (usually fluorescein isothiocyanate) or of naturally fluorescent materials, which emit light when exposed to ultraviolet or blue light. Immunofluorescence microscopy utilizes antibodies that are labeled with fluorescent dye.	Fluorescence Microscopy,Immunofluorescence Microscopy,Microscopy, Immunofluorescence,Fluorescence Microscopies,Immunofluorescence Microscopies,Microscopies, Fluorescence,Microscopies, Immunofluorescence
D010078	Oxazines	Six-membered heterocycles containing an oxygen and a nitrogen.
D001896	Boron Compounds	Inorganic or organic compounds that contain boron as an integral part of the molecule.	Borides,Compounds, Boron
D002460	Cell Line	Established cell cultures that have the potential to propagate indefinitely.	Cell Lines,Line, Cell,Lines, Cell
D005456	Fluorescent Dyes	Chemicals that emit light after excitation by light. The wave length of the emitted light is usually longer than that of the incident light. Fluorochromes are substances that cause fluorescence in other substances, i.e., dyes used to mark or label other compounds with fluorescent tags.	Flourescent Agent,Fluorescent Dye,Fluorescent Probe,Fluorescent Probes,Fluorochrome,Fluorochromes,Fluorogenic Substrates,Fluorescence Agents,Fluorescent Agents,Fluorogenic Substrate,Agents, Fluorescence,Agents, Fluorescent,Dyes, Fluorescent,Probes, Fluorescent,Substrates, Fluorogenic
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000070780	Perilipin-2	A perilipin that is expressed by many different cell types. It binds FATTY ACIDS and CHOLESTEROL, stabilizes TRIGLYCERIDES, and localizes to both the surface and hydrophobic core of LIPID DROPLETS, as well as the ENDOPLASMIC RECTICULUM and PLASMA MEMBRANE in MACROPHAGES. It also plays a central role in the biogenesis of lipid droplets and FOAM CELLS and is highly expressed by macrophages at atherosclerotic lesions in human arteries along with the INFLAMMATION markers TNF-ALPHA; MCP-1 RECEPTOR; and IL-6.	ADRP Protein,Adipophilin,Adipose Differentiation-Related Protein,PLIN2 Protein,Perilipin 2 Protein,Adipose Differentiation Related Protein,Perilipin 2,Protein, Adipose Differentiation-Related,Protein, PLIN2,Protein, Perilipin 2
D001391	Azo Compounds	Organic chemicals where aryl or alkyl groups are joined by two nitrogen atoms through a double bond (R-N	Azo Dye,Azo Dyes,Compounds, Azo,Dye, Azo,Dyes, Azo