Fluorescent Lipids

What are Fluorescent Lipids?

Fluorescent lipids are a class of products in which fluorescent markers and lipids are directly linked by chemical bonds, and they can emit light under the excitation of specific wavelengths of light. Fluorescent lipids can be incorporated into liposomes and lipid nanoparticles for tracking intracellular lipid localization and movement, enabling real-time visualization and tracking of lipid molecules, providing a valuable tool for biological systems.

Fig. 1. A fluorescent dye is attached to the lipophilic anchor. (Dumat et al., 2019)

Fluorescent Lipids Pre-synthesis

• Fluorescent dye selection

Common fluorescent dyes include fluorescein, rhodamine, fluorescein isoforms, thiofluorescein, etc. BOC Sciences needs to select appropriate fluorescent dyes according to customer's needs (e.g., fluorescence wavelength, stability, brightness, etc.) when providing fluorescent lipids synthesis services.

• Lipid design

The design of lipids depends on the application requirements and requires rational selection and design of the lipid structure in order to realize the stability, fluorescence performance and biological activity of the fluorescent lipids. Specific factors to consider include the following:

(1) If phospholipid lipids are selected, the hydrophobic fatty acid tails and hydrophilic phospholipid heads of the lipids need to be considered, and these structures will affect the performance of the fluorescent lipids.

(2) If it is a liposome, the structure and properties of the liposome need to be considered, such as the monolayer and multilayer structure, the size and shape of the vesicles, which will affect the encapsulation efficiency and release rate of the fluorescent dye.

(3) If the lipid nanoparticles are selected, factors such as the size of the particles and the composition of the lipids need to be considered.

• Surface modification of lipids

According to the design of lipid structure and customer's needs, we can customize the surface modification service of lipid to achieve customer's purpose. The modification of lipid structure includes:

• Polymer modification

The purpose of polymer modification is usually to increase the water solubility and biocompatibility of the lipid as well as to reduce non-specific interactions of the organism. Some of the polymers that can be chosen are polyethylene glycol, etc.

• Protein modification

Proteins are modified in order to impart specific functions to lipids such as bioactivity and targeting.

• Sugar modification

Sugar molecules are introduced to the surface of lipids by chemical synthesis, etc. to enhance lipid-cell interactions.

• Antioxidant modification

The introduction of antioxidants into lipids reduces oxidative damage to lipids and decreases the production of free radicals.

BOC Sciences' Fluorescent Lipids Synthesis Services

• Custom synthesis of fluorescent lipids

After the selection of the fluorescent dye and the design and modification of the lipid, the fluorescent dye solution can be mixed with the lipid solution. After making a homogeneous fluorescent dye-lipid solution, the solvent is removed to form a fluorescent lipid solid. Subsequently, the fluorescent lipid solids are uniformly dispersed in the solution and prepared into fluorescent lipids of a certain concentration and pH as desired.

• Fluorescent lipids and characterization

Fluorescent lipids are usually purified using column chromatography techniques such as thin layer chromatography, gel chromatography or high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC).

Characterization of fluorescent lipids can be done using the following techniques:

• Fluorescence Spectroscopy - Fluorescence spectroscopy allows the detection of fluorescent dyes by fluorescence spectrometry to characterize them with information such as maximum emission wavelength, emission intensity and excitation spectra.
• Thin Layer Chromatography - Thin layer chromatography can help determine purity and composition.
• Mass Spectrometry - Mass spectrometry can be used to identify and quantify fluorescent lipids to determine the structure and purity of fluorescent dyes.
• Morphological Characterization - Microscopy techniques can be used to observe the morphology and distribution of fluorescent lipids to determine the state of encapsulation and micelle formation.

Based on professional technology and rich experience, BOC Sciences has provided customers with the synthesis of many types of lipids and related analytical and testing services. If you are in need of our services, please feel free to contact us.