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Updated: Jan 23, 2026

In Vivo Two-Color 2-Photon Imaging of Genetically-Tagged Reporter Cells in the Skin
Published on: July 11, 2019
Imaging neuropeptide release at synapses with a genetically engineered reporter
Keke Ding1, Yifu Han2,3, Taylor W Seid1
1Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, United States.
Abstract:
Research on neuropeptide function has advanced rapidly, yet there is still no spatio-temporally resolved method to measure the release of neuropeptides in vivo. Here we introduce Neuropeptide Release Reporters (NPRRs): novel genetically-encoded sensors with high temporal resolution and genetic specificity. Using the Drosophila larval neuromuscular junction (NMJ) as a model, we provide evidence that NPRRs recapitulate the trafficking and packaging of native neuropeptides, and report stimulation-evoked neuropeptide release events as real-time changes in fluorescence intensity, with sub-second temporal resolution.
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Because chemical synapses depend on the release of neurotransmitter molecules from synaptic vesicles to pass on their signal, there is an approximately one millisecond delay between when the axon potential reaches the presynaptic terminal and when the neurotransmitter leads to opening of postsynaptic ion channels. Additionally, this signaling is...
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