Photodynamic properties of green fluorescent proteins investigated by fluorescence correlation spectroscopy

GFPs are upon excitation influenced by many different photophysical and photochemical processes effective over a very broad time scale. Much effort has been spent to investigate these processes. However, in the microsecond to millisecond time-range many processes still remain to be further characterized. This time-range can be conveniently covered by FCS, and is used here to study the photodynamical behaviour of wild-type (WT) and a F64L S65T mutant (BioST) of GFP. In addition to intersystem crossing to the triplet state, additional photophysical processes are seen, showing identical fluctuations in fluorescence to those found for a reversible photo-induced isomerization process, as well as fluctuations, not influenced by the electronic state of the chromophore unit. In the nanosecond time-range a contribution to the fluorescence correlation function is observed which can be attributed to rotational diffusion, suggesting a convenient way to measure rotational diffusion of proteins expressed with GFP on a microscopic scale. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.