Cell and Organelle Stains

Active Motif offers several products to study cellular structure using fluorescence microscopy or high-content applications. Our Cell and Organelle Stains are a collection of innovative fluorescent dyes that provide specific and efficient staining of subcellular structures in live and in fixed cells. A key feature is that the dyes become fluorescent only after specific binding to target structures; this eliminates background fluorescence caused by any unbound dye. The Cell and Organelle Stains serve as counter-stains in microscopy and can be used as a live cell stain to monitor changes in cell morphology, changes to mitochondrial structure and number, or as a cell-tracer in cell populations. The unique Stem Cell CDy1 Dye accumulates specifically in stem cells, allowing their identification from feeder cells or mixed cultures.

• LavaCell™ is a naturally fluorescent compound that diffuses into live or fixed cells, where it stains the plasma membrane and internal membranes, such as those of the nucleus, Golgi and ER.
• Chromeo™ LT Live Cell Membrane Staining Kit is fluorescent complex that selectively stains lipid membranes in living cells allowing long-term labeling experiments.
• Chromeo™ Live Cell Mitochondrial Staining Kit is a membrane permeable dye that selectively stains mitochondria in living cells.
• Chromeo™ Red Fluorescent Fixed Cell Staining Kit serves as a counterstain in immunofluorescence experiments where the red color can be used together with green dyes such as FITC or other 488-excitable dyes.
• Stem Cell CDy1 Dye is a unique fluorescent dye for easy identification of stem cells by flow cytometry or fluorescence microscopy .

The following table summarizes the fluorescent properties of the organelle-specific dyes, and provides an overview about their performance in different staining experiments.