Ultrastructural Localization of Endogenous LC3 by On-Section Correlative Light-Electron Microscopy

Abstract

The visualization of autophagic organelles at the ultrastructural level by electron microscopy (EM) is essential to establish their identity and reveal details that are important for understanding the autophagic process. However, EM methods often lack molecular information, obstructing the correlation of ultrastructural information obtained by EM to fluorescence microscopy-based localization of specific autophagy proteins. Furthermore, the rarity of autophagosomes in unaltered cellular conditions hampers investigation by EM, which requires high magnification, and hence provides a limited field of view. In answer to both challenges, an on-section correlative light-electron microscopy (CLEM) method based on fluorescent labeling was applied to correlate a common autophagosomal marker, LC3, to EM ultrastructure. The method was used to rapidly screen cells in fluorescence microscopy for LC3 labeling in combination with other relevant markers. Subsequently, the underlying ultrastructural features of selected LC3-labeled spots were identified by CLEM. The method was applied to starved cells without adding inhibitors of lysosomal acidification. In these conditions, LC3 was found predominantly on autophagosomes and rarely in autolysosomes, in which LC3 is rapidly degraded. These data show both the feasibility and sensitivity of this approach, demonstrating that CLEM can be used to provide ultrastructural insights on LC3-mediated autophagy in native conditions-without drug treatments or genetic alterations. Overall, this method presents a valuable tool for ultrastructural localization studies of autophagy proteins and other scarce antigens by bridging light microscopy to EM data.