Fluorescence lifetime imaging of fluorescent proteins as an effective quantitative tool for noninvasive study of intracellular processes

Fluorescence lifetime imaging (FLIM) is an effective noninvasive bioanalytical tool based on measuring fluorescent lifetime of fluorophores. A growing number of FLIM studies utilizes genetically engineered fluorescent proteins targeted to specific subcellular structures to probe local molecular environment, which opens new directions in cell science. This paper highlights the unconventional applications of FLIM for studies of molecular processes in diverse organelles of live cultured cells.