摘要：SummaryThe consensus for the precise mechanism of action of general anesthetics is through allosteric interactions with GABA receptors in neurons. However, it has been speculated that these anesthetics may also interact with the plasma membrane on some level. Owing to the small size of anesthetics, direct visualization of these interactions is difficult to achieve. We demonstrate the ability to directly visualize a deuterated analog of propofol in living cells using stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) microscopy. Our findings support the theory that propofol is highly concentrated and interacts primarily through non-specific binding to the plasma membrane of neurons. Additionally, we show that SRS microscopy can be used to monitor the dynamics of propofol binding using real-time, live-cell imaging. The strategy used to visualize propofol can be applied to other small molecule drugs that have been previously invisible to traditional imaging techniquesGraphical abstractDisplay OmittedHighlights•Multi-modal SRS developed for real-time biological imaging of small molecule substances•Propofol primarily concentrates at the cell membrane of neurons•Anesthesia dynamics can be monitored in real-time with SRSCellular neuroscience; Techniques in neuroscience; Cell biology
