Double Staining Calcein-AM Propidium Iodide Kit Cell Analysis Simultaneous Viable and Dead Cell Stain Cellstain® Dojindo Laboratories Wako

Cellstain® Double Staining Kit produced by Dojindo Laboratories and distributed in association with FUJIFILM Wako Chemicals Europe GmbH

The Cellstain® range, produced by Dojindo Laboratories is intended for research use to facilitate cell analysis. Cellstain® Double Staining Kit is utilised for simultaneous fluorescence staining of viable and dead cells. This kit contains Calcein-AM and Propidium Iodide (PI) solutions, which stain viable and dead cells, respectively. Calcein-AM, an acetoxymethyl ester of calcein, is highly lipophilic and cell membrane permeable. Although Calcein-AM itself is not a fluorescent molecule, the calcein generated from Calcein-AM by esterase in a viable cell emits a strong green fluorescence (excitation: 490 nm, emission: 515 nm). Therefore, Calcein-AM only stains viable cells. On the other hand, PI, a nuclei staining dye, cannot pass through a viable cell membrane. It reaches the nucleus by passing through disordered areas of dead cell membrane and intercalates with the DNA double helix of the cell to emit red fluorescence (excitation: 535 nm, emmision: 617 nm). Since both calcein and PI-DNA can be excited with 490 nm, simultaneous monitoring of viable and dead cells is possible with a fluorescence microscope. With 545 nm excitation, only dead cells can be observed. Since optimal staining conditions differ from cell line to cell line, we recommend that a suitable concentration of PI and Calcein- AM be individually determined. Please note that PI is suspected to be highly carcinogenic; careful handling is required.

Assay Procedure
Add 10 µl Solution A and 5 µl Solution B to 5 ml PBS to prepare assay solution.*
1. Wash the cell with PBS several times to remove residual esterase activity.
2. Add 100 µl of assay solution to the cell and incubate the mixture at 37°C for 15 min.
3. Detect fluorescence using a fluorescence mircoscope with 490 nm excitation for simultaneous monitoring of viable and dead cells. With 545 nm excitation, only dead cells can be observed.
* The concentration of each reagent should be optimized. The following steps may be necessary to determine the suitable concentration of each reagent:

1. Prepare dead cells by 10 minutes incubation in 0.1% saponin or 0.1-0.5% digitonin or by 30 minutes incubation in 70% ethanol.

2. Stain dead cells with 0.1-10 µM PI solution to find a PI concentration that stains the nucleus only, not the cytosol.

3. Stain dead cells with 0.1-10 µM Calcein-AM solution to find a Calcein-AM concentration that does not stain the cytosol. Then stain viable cells with that Calcein-AM solution to check whether the viable cell can be stained.

Cellstain® Double Staining Kit
Solution A (Calcein-AM) 4 vials
Solution B (Propidium Iodide) 1vial
Dojindo Laboratories: CS01-10
Molecular Formula:C₁₆H₁₇Cl₂N₅
Store -20°C, protect from light
Ships with ice packs