Spatially-resolved intracellular sensing of hydrogen peroxide in living cells

Understanding intracellular redox chemistry requires new tools for the site-specific visualization of intracellular oxidation. We have developed a spatially-resolved intracellular sensor of hydrogen peroxide, HyPer-Tau, for time-resolved imaging in live cells. This sensor consists of a hydrogen peroxide-sensing protein tethered to microtubules. We demonstrate the use of the HyPer-Tau sensor for three applications; dose-dependent response of human cells to exogenous hydrogen peroxide, a model immune response of mouse macrophages to stimulation by bacterial toxin, and a spatially-resolved response to localized delivery of hydrogen peroxide. These results demonstrate that HyPer-Tau can be used as an effective tool for tracking changes in spatially localized intracellular hydrogen peroxide and for future applications in redox signaling.