Nerve Terminal Staining Kit V

The Nerve Terminal Stain Kits are used to detect and study synaptic vesicle recycling in neuronal synapses and neuromuscular junctions. Although each kit employs a different amphiphilic styryl pyridinium dye to visualize the vesicles, the tissue preparation, reagents required, and staining procedures are identical for each. The dyes fluoresce intensely inside plasma membranes but only minimally in aqueous environments.
When neurons are actively releasing neurotransmitters, dye is incorporated into recycled vesicles at the presynaptic terminal. The dye-containing vesicles are not susceptible to subsequent wash steps that remove the excess dye from the outer leaflet of the plasma membrane. Thus only active presynaptic terminals are labeled. Advasep-7 further reduces background by encapsulating the probes, preventing stain from accumulating interstitially.