For the best experience on the Abcam website please upgrade to a modern browser such as Google Chrome

We use cookies to make our site as useful as possible.

Our Cookie Policy explains how you can opt-out of the cookies we use.

If you continue without changing your cookie settings, we'll assume you’re happy with this.

Continue Continue

United States
Your country/region is currently set to:

If incorrect, please enter your country/region into the box below, to view site information related to your country/region.

Call (888) 77-ABCAM (22226) or contact us
Need help? Contact us

  • My account
  • Sign out
Sign in or Register with us

Welcome

Sign in or

Don't have an account?

Register with us
My basket
Quick order
Abcam homepage

  • Research Products
    By product type
    Primary antibodies
    Secondary antibodies
    ELISA and Matched Antibody Pair Kits
    Cell and tissue imaging tools
    Cellular and biochemical assays
    Proteins and Peptides
    By product type
    Proteomics tools
    Agonists, activators, antagonists and inhibitors
    Cell lines and Lysates
    Multiplex miRNA assays
    Multiplex Assays
    By research area
    Cancer
    Cardiovascular
    Cell Biology
    Epigenetics
    Metabolism
    Developmental Biology
    By research area
    Immunology
    Microbiology
    Neuroscience
    Signal Transduction
    Stem Cells
  • Diagnostic & Therapeutic Solutions
    Custom solutions & partnerships

    Custom antibody development and commercial partnerships to advance your diagnostic and therapeutic discovery.

    Create custom solutions with us

    Partner with us

  • Support
    Support hub

    Access advice and support for any research roadblock

    View support hub

    Protocols

    Your experiments laid out step by step

    View protocols

  • Events
    • Conference calendar
    • Cancer
    • Cardiovascular
    • Epigenetics & Nuclear signaling
    • Immunology
    • Neuroscience
    • Stem cells
    • Tradeshows
    • Scientific webinars
    Keep up to date with the latest events

    Full event breakdown with abstracts, speakers, registration and more

    View global event calendar

  • Pathways
    Cell signalling pathways

    View all pathways

    View all interactive pathways

Supporting our customers and employees during the COVID-19 pandemic. Read more

Cytopainter cell staining kits

Live cell staining dyes

Related

  • Cell imaging resources
    • Conjugated primary antibodies
      • Direct vs indirect immunofluorescence
        • Fluorochrome chart – a complete guide
          • See advantages of Alexa Fluor® secondary antibodies
              • Cell imaging tools
                • Alexa Fluor® 488 secondary antibodies
                  • RabMAb® antibodies for high sensitivity
                    • Review our recombinant antibodies
                    • GFP product recommendations

                      Fluorescent dyes for staining live cells. Review dyes used for labeling subcellular organelles, live cell tracking, and live cell labeling.


                      Live cell staining of sub-cellular organelles

                      ​​

                      Organelle visualization with organelle-selective stains or dyes is a key tool in fluorescence imaging of cells and tissues. These specific stains are suitable counterstains to antibodies to help the identification of location-specific targets of interest within the cell. Dyes for live cell staining of organelles are available in a broad spectrum of colors. 

                      Find out about dyes for specific organelles:​​

                      StructureDye InformationLive/fixed (cells or tissue)
                      ER stainingCell-permeable dye that localizes to endoplasmic reticula.Live/fixed (aldehyde)
                      Golgi stainingCell-permeable dye that localizes to Golgi.Live/fixed (aldehyde)
                      F-actin / actin filament stainingPhalloidin-conjugated dye that binds to actin filaments but not to actin monomers or dimers.Fixed (aldehyde)
                      Lysosomal stainingCell-permeable dye that accumulates in the lysosome via the lysosome pH gradient (pH 4.5 - 4.8).Live (can be fixed in aldehyde after staining)
                      Mitochondrial stainingCell-permeable dye that accumulates in the mitochondria via the mitochondrial membrane potential.Live (can be fixed in aldehyde after staining)
                      Also, see JC-1 and other mitochondrial membrane potential assay
                      Nucleolar stainingCell-permeable dye that accumulates in the nucleolus.Live
                      Plasma membrane stainingDye that accumulates in the plasma membraneLive


                      ​​Actin filament staining (red, ab112127) in Hydractinia, a colonial marine hydroid. Nuclei are shown in blue (Hoechst) for counterstaining.

                      Image courtesy of an Abreview.

                      Live cell tracking

                      ​Analyze your cells of interest for hours or days with cell tracking dyes that are retained in living cells. These dyes are hydrophobic compounds that can permeate through the plasma membrane and become strongly fluorescent once inside the cell.​​​​​

                      ​

                      Product RangeDescriptionBest used for
                      Live cell labelingNon-fluorescent dyes with a cell-retaining moiety. Upon entering cells, dye becomes fluorescent and trapped in the cells.Cell adhesion, cellular motility and cell viability studies. Cells need to be viewed in less than 2 hours.
                      Live cell trackingNon-fluorescent dyes with a cell-retaining moiety. Upon entering cells, dye becomes fluorescent and trapped in cells. Compatible with cell culture medium (no washing step).Multicolor analysis of cells for cell drug resistance, cell adhesion and chemotaxis. Cells need to be viewed in less than 24 - 48 hours as dye will not pass to daughter cells.
                      Cell proliferationNon-fluorescent dyes with a cell-retaining moiety. Upon entering cells, dye becomes fluorescent and trapped in cells.
                      ​The adduct formed in labeled cells is inherited by daughter cells after cell division.
                      Analysis of heterogeneous cell populations over time. Fluorescence is preserved upon formaldehyde fixation. Dye is retained for up to 9 generations after staining.
                      Fixable cell viabilityImpermeable live-cell dyes that only enter cells with compromised membranes. Viable cells show low fluorescence while non-viable cells show intense staining.Cell viability evaluation in a multiplex experiment. Fluorescence is preserved upon formaldehyde fixation.


                      Get resources and offers direct to your inbox Sign up
                      A-Z by research area
                      • Cancer
                      • Cardiovascular
                      • Cell biology
                      • Developmental biology
                      • Epigenetics & Nuclear signaling
                      • Immunology
                      • Metabolism
                      • Microbiology
                      • Neuroscience
                      • Signal transduction
                      • Stem cells
                      A-Z by product type
                      • Primary antibodies
                      • Secondary antibodies
                      • Biochemicals
                      • Isotype controls
                      • Flow cytometry multi-color selector
                      • Kits
                      • Loading controls
                      • Lysates
                      • Peptides
                      • Proteins
                      • Slides
                      • Tags and cell markers
                      • Tools & Reagents
                      Help & support
                      • Support
                      • Make an Inquiry
                      • Protocols & troubleshooting
                      • Placing an order
                      • RabMAb products
                      • Biochemical product FAQs
                      • Training
                      • Browse by Target
                      Company
                      • Corporate site
                      • Investor relations
                      • Company news
                      • Careers
                      • About us
                      • Blog
                      Events
                      • Tradeshows
                      • Conferences
                      International websites
                      • abcam.cn
                      • abcam.co.jp

                      Join with us

                      • LinkedIn
                      • facebook
                      • Twitter
                      • YouTube
                      • Terms of sale
                      • Website terms of use
                      • Cookie policy
                      • Privacy policy
                      • Legal
                      • Modern slavery statement
                      © 1998-2021 Abcam plc. All rights reserved.