Targeting and tracing antigens in live cells with fluorescent nanobodies.
Rothbauer U., Zolghadr K., Tillib S., Nowak D., Schermelleh L., Gahl A., Backmann N., Conrath K., Muyldermans S., Cardoso MC., Leonhardt H.
We fused the epitope-recognizing fragment of heavy-chain antibodies from Camelidae sp. with fluorescent proteins to generate fluorescent, antigen-binding nanobodies (chromobodies) that can be expressed in living cells. We demonstrate that chromobodies can recognize and trace antigens in different subcellular compartments throughout S phase and mitosis. Chromobodies should enable new functional studies, as potentially any antigenic structure can be targeted and traced in living cells in this fashion.