Resonance energy transfer in cells: a new look at fixation effect and receptor aggregation on cell membrane

Fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) measurements offer a reliable and noninvasive approach to studying protein and lipid colocalization in cells. We have considered systems in which FRET occurs as intramolecular and/or intermolecular process. The proposed dynamic FRET model shows that in the case of intermolecular process the degree of aggregation only slightly affects the energy transfer efficiency. The theory was tested on a set of donor-acceptor pairs in which energy transfer occurs intramolecularly, intermolecularly, or both. The obtained experimental results are in a good agreement with the proposed model. It is well known that the energy transfer efficiency depends both on the distance between the donor and acceptor molecules and the relative orientation of their respective transition dipole moments. This dual dependence often leads to ambiguity. In this article, we show how FRET efficiency can be significantly reduced even in highly coupled system through conformational restrictions in the donor-acceptor pair. Importantly, such restrictions can be imposed on the system by cell fixation, a procedure routinely used when conducting FRET measurements.