Cell Navigator(TM) Lysosome Staining Kit *NIR Fluorescence*

The membrane around a lysosome allows the digestive enzymes to work at pH 4.5. The interior of the lysosomes is acidic (pH 4.5-4.8) compared to the slightly alkaline cytosol (pH 7.2). Our Cell Navigator(TM) fluorescence imaging kits are a set of fluorescence imaging tools for labeling sub-cellular organelles such as membranes, lysosomes, mitochondria, nuclei, etc. This kit is designed to label lysosomes of live cells.The lysotropic dye used in the kit, selectively accumulates in lysosomes probably via the lysosome pH gradient. The lysotropic indicator is a hydrophobic compound that easily permeates intact live cells, and trapped in lysosomes after it gets into cells. Its fluorescence is significantly enhanced upon entering lysosomes. This key feature significantly reduces its staining background and makes it useful for a variety of studies, including cell adhesion, chemotaxis, multidrug resistance, cell viability, apoptosis and cytotoxicity. It is suitable for proliferating and non-proliferating cells, and can be used for both suspension and adherent cells. LysoBrite(TM) dyes significantly outperform the equivalent LysoTracker (TM)dyes (from Invitrogen). LysoBrite(TM) dyes can stay in live cells for more than a week with very minimal cell toxicity while the LysoTracker dyes can only be used for a few hours. LysoBrite(TM) dyes are fixable, and can survive a few generations of cell division. In addition, LysoBrite(TM) dyes are much more photostable than the LysoTracker dyes.