Aptamer-based single-molecule imaging of insulin receptors in living cells

We present a single-molecule imaging platform that quantitatively explores the spatiotemporal dynamics of individual insulin receptors in living cells. Modified DNA aptamers that specifically recognize insulin receptors (IRs) with a high affinity were selected through the SELEX process. Using quantum dot-labeled aptamers, we successfully imaged and analyzed the diffusive motions of individual IRs in the plasma membranes of a variety of cell lines (HIR, HEK293, HepG2). We further explored the cholesterol-dependent movement of IRs to address whether cholesterol depletion interferes with IRs and found that cholesterol depletion of the plasma membrane by methyl-β-cyclodextrin reduces the mobility of IRs. The aptamer-based single-molecule imaging of IRs will provide better understanding of insulin signal transduction through the dynamics study of IRs in the plasma membrane.