The oocytes from Xenopus laevis are well known for their polarity, presenting a distinct animal and vegetal pole. Other heterogeneities are less known. To study the heterogeneity of the Xenopus oocyte, we expressed eGFP and analyzed the protein distribution with fluorescence lifetime microscopy. The vegetal pole exhibited higher levels of fluorescence, than the animal pole. However, the fluorescence lifetimes between the two areas were indistinguishable, suggesting similar environments. In contrast, we observed a substantial and gradual decrease in the fluorescence lifetime from 2.9 ns to 2.6 ns as slices approached the periphery. This has an important implication for future oocyte studies as it demonstrates the environment inside the oocyte is not uniform and might affect the fluorescence intensity. As a result, it cannot be assumed that the observed fluorescence intensity reflects the expression of the proteins but might reflect the environment within the oocyte.

中文翻译：

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荧光寿命成像揭示非洲爪蟾卵母细胞中表达的eGFP的异质功能分布。

非洲爪蟾的卵母细胞以其极性着称，呈现出独特的动物和植物性极。其他异质性鲜为人知。为了研究非洲爪蟾卵母细胞的异质性，我们表达了eGFP，并用荧光寿命显微镜分析了蛋白质分布。植物极显示出比动物极高的荧光水平。但是，两个区域之间的荧光寿命无法区分，表明环境相似。相反，随着切片接近外围，我们观察到荧光寿命从2.9 ns逐渐降低到2.6 ns，并且逐渐下降。这对未来的卵母细胞研究具有重要意义，因为它表明卵母细胞内部的环境不均匀，并可能影响荧光强度。结果是，