Methyl green
Methyl green (CI 42585) is a cationic or positive charged stain, related to Ethyl green, that has been used for staining DNA in cell nuclei as a part of the classical Unna-Pappenheim stain. In recent years, its fluorescent properties[1] when bound to DNA have positioned it useful for far-red imaging of live cell nuclei.[2] Fluorescent DNA staining is routinely used in cancer prognosis.[3] Methyl green also emerges as an alternative stain for DNA in agarose gels, fluorometric assays and flow cytometry.[4][5] It has also been shown that it can be used as an exclusion viability stain for cells. Its interaction with DNA has been shown to be non-intercalating, in other words not inserting itself into the DNA, but instead electrostatic with the DNA major groove.[6]
References
- ^ "fluorophores.org". www.fluorophores.tugraz.at. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
- ^ Prieto et al. (2014)"A fast, low cost, and highly efficient fluorescent DNA labeling method using methyl green.", Histochemistry and Cell Biology 142(3):335-345
- ^ Klonisch et al., 2010 "Nuclear imaging in three dimensions: A unique tool in cancer research" Annals of Anatomy 195(5):292-301
- ^ Prieto et al. (2014)"A fast, low cost, and highly efficient fluorescent DNA labeling method using methyl green.", Histochemistry and Cell Biology 142(3):335-345
- ^ Prieto et al. (2015)"Application of the DNA-Specific Stain Methyl Green in the Fluorescent Labeling of Embryos", Journal of Visualized Experiments 99:1-8
- ^ Kim & Nordén (1993)"Methyl green. A DNA major-groove binding drug." FEBS letters 315(1):61-64