 |
|
UGA biomedical engineer publishes on 'super-resolution' video imaging
May 05, 2009Athens, Ga. - A crucial tool in the evolution of scientific capability in bioscience, the fluorescence microscope has allowed a generation of scientists to study the properties of proteins inside cells. Yet as human capacity for discovery has zoomed to the nanoscale, fluorescence microscopy has struggled to keep up. Now, a team that includes UGA engineer Peter Kner has developed a microscope that is capable of live imaging at double the resolution of fluorescence microscopy using structured illumination. The research was published in Nature Methods on April 26.
The laws of physics have limited the resolution of fluorescence microscopy, whereby a fluorescent marker is used to distinguish specific proteins, to about 200 nanometers. At this resolution significant detail is lost about the activity within a cell. The increased resolution by structured illumination is an engineering feat that will help scientists learn more about cell behavior and study mechanisms important for human disease.
"Our understanding of what is going on inside cells and our ability to manipulate them has advanced so much that it has become more and more important to see them at a better resolution," said Kner, who joined UGA this spring semester. Kner built the structured illumination microscope with colleagues at the University of California, San Francisco.
This work follows on at least a decade of research building on the nearly fifty-year history of fluorescence microscopy. The technology has been a multi-disciplinary springboard of optical engineering, chemistry and biology, in which the disciplines have all contributed to visualizing fluorescent dyes attached to proteins, advancing our understanding of cellular activity. The importance of fluorescence microscopy was recently recognized with the 2008 Nobel Prize for Chemistry which was awarded for the development of the green fluorescent protein (GFP), which has played a crucial role in our identification and understanding of proteins.
"What we've done is develop a much faster system that allows you to look at live cells expressing GFP, which is a very powerful tool for labeling inside the cell," Kner explained.
"It would be difficult to overstate the importance of bio-imaging to ongoing research in human health," said Dale Threadgill, director of the UGA Faculty of Engineering. "The ability to shine a light on the leading-edge of scientific discovery will define the route to entirely new regimens of health management at the intersections of science and engineering, and Dr. Kner has joined a distinguished cadre at UGA to continue working at that interface," Threadgill added.
University of Georgia
This work follows on at least a decade of research building on the nearly fifty-year history of fluorescence microscopy. The technology has been a multi-disciplinary springboard of optical engineering, chemistry and biology, in which the disciplines have all contributed to visualizing fluorescent dyes attached to proteins, advancing our understanding of cellular activity. The importance of fluorescence microscopy was recently recognized with the 2008 Nobel Prize for Chemistry which was awarded for the development of the green fluorescent protein (GFP), which has played a crucial role in our identification and understanding of proteins.
"What we've done is develop a much faster system that allows you to look at live cells expressing GFP, which is a very powerful tool for labeling inside the cell," Kner explained.
"It would be difficult to overstate the importance of bio-imaging to ongoing research in human health," said Dale Threadgill, director of the UGA Faculty of Engineering. "The ability to shine a light on the leading-edge of scientific discovery will define the route to entirely new regimens of health management at the intersections of science and engineering, and Dr. Kner has joined a distinguished cadre at UGA to continue working at that interface," Threadgill added.
University of Georgia
Fluorescence Microscopy Current Events and Fluorescence Microscopy News RSSHoping for a fluorescent basket case
Although recent advances have raised hopes that a protective vaccine can be developed, acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) remains a major public health problem.
Seeing previously invisible molecules for the first time
A team of Harvard chemists led by X. Sunney Xie has developed a new microscopic technique for seeing, in color, molecules with undetectable fluorescence.
Why the thumb of the right hand is on the left hand side
It is the concentration of a few signaling molecules that determines the fate of individual cells during the early development of organisms.
Findings show insulin - not genes - linked to obesity
Researchers have uncovered new evidence suggesting factors other than genes could cause obesity, finding that genetically identical cells store widely differing amounts of fat depending on subtle variations in how cells process insulin.
Researchers develop new way to see single RNA molecules inside living cells
Biomedical engineers have developed a new type of probe that allows them to visualize single ribonucleic acid (RNA) molecules within live cells more easily than existing methods. The tool will help scientists learn more about how RNA operates within living cells.
Fluorescent proteins illuminating biomedical research
Remarkable new tools that spotlight individual cellular molecules are transforming biomedical research. Scientists at the Gruss Lipper Biophotonics Center at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have spearheaded their use in a series of papers, including one published today in the online version of Nature Methods.
Innate immune system targets asthma-linked fungus for destruction
A new study shows that the innate immune system of humans is capable of killing a fungus linked to airway inflammation, chronic rhinosinusitis and bronchial asthma.
Viruses hitch a ride in the cell
Viruses can travel around cells they infect by hitching a ride on a microscopic transport system, according to new research. Cells are exposed to foreign DNA and RNA and it is understood that some of this genetic material can be integrated into the host genome. Using modern microscopic techniques, scientists have been able to see how virus DNA is transported in the cell.
Synergy between biology and physics drives cell-imaging technology
Developing techniques to image the complex biological systems found at the sub-cellular level has traditionally been hampered by divisions between the academic fields of biology and physics. However, a new interdisciplinary zeal has seen a number of exciting advances in super-resolution imaging technologies.
Researchers visualize complex pigment mixtures in living cells
In a technical advance that could allow researchers to watch cells as they act during the process of photosynthesis, scientists have developed a method that extends the power of fluorescence-mediated bio-imaging to see discrete pigments inside live cells of bacteria.
More Fluorescence Microscopy Current Events and Fluorescence Microscopy News Articles
 |
FLUORESCENCE MICROSCPY 2E (Microscopy Handbooks Series, No. 35) by B Herman (Author) A comprehensive and practical guide to fluorescence microscopy techniques. |
 |
Fluorescence Applications in Biotechnology and Life Sciences by Ewa M. Goldys (Author) A self-contained treatment of the latest fluorescence applications in biotechnology and the life sciences This book focuses specifically on the present applications of fluorescence in molecular and cellular dynamics, biological/medical imaging, proteomics, genomics, and flow cytometry. It raises awareness of the latest scientific approaches and technologies that may help resolve problems relevant for the industry and the community in areas such as public health, food safety, and environmental monitoring. Following an introductory chapter on the basics of fluorescence, the book covers: labeling of cells with fluorescent dyes; genetically encoded fluorescent proteins; nanoparticle fluorescence probes; quantitative analysis of fluorescent images; spectral imaging and... |
 |
Introduction to Confocal Fluorescence Microscopy, Second Edition (SPIE Tutorial Texts in Optical Engineering Vol. TT69) by Michiel Mueller (Author) This book provides a comprehensive account of the theory of image formation in a confocal fluorescence microscope as well as a practical guideline to the operation of the instrument, its limitations, and the interpretation of confocal microscopy data. The appendices provide a quick reference to optical theory, microscopy-related formulas and definitions, and Fourier theory. |
 |
Fluorescence Microscopy Techniques: Concepts and Applications in Biological and Chemical Systems by Xiaowen Dai (Author) Fluorescence microscopy has become an essential tool in life sciences. This book describes the recent research efforts in the development of fluorescence microscopy techniques for exploring biological and chemical systems. In particular, laser scanning confocal microscopy and fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy are discussed in detail on their applications in environmentally responsive polymers, live cell imaging, drug delivery and biosensing. |
 |
Microscopy: Optical Microscope, Bright Field Microscopy, Dark Field Microscopy, Dispersion Staining, Phase Contrast Microscopy, Differential Interference Contrast Microscopy, Fluorescence Microscope by Frederic P. Miller (Editor), Agnes F. Vandome (Editor), John McBrewster (Editor) Microscopy. Optical Microscope, Bright Field Microscopy, Dark Field Microscopy, Dispersion Staining, Phase Contrast Microscopy, Differential Interference Contrast Microscopy, Fluorescence Microscope, Confocal Microscopy, X-ray Microscope, Electron Microscope, Atomic de Broglie Microscope, Scanning probe Microscopy, Digital Pathology, Interferometric Microscopy, Two-photon Excitation Microscopy |
 |
Principles of Fluorescence Spectroscopy by Joseph R. Lakowicz (Author) The third edition of the established classic text reference, Principles of Fluorescence Spectroscopy, will enhance upon the earlier editions' successes. Organized as a textbook for the learning student or the researcher needing to acquire the core competencies, Principles of Fluorescence Spectroscopy, 3e will maintain the emphasis on basics, while updating the examples to include recent results from the literature. The third edition also includes new chapters on single molecule detection, fluorescence correlation spectroscopy, novel probes and radiative decay engineering. This full-color textbook features the following: - Problem sets following every chapter - Glossaries of commonly used acronyms and mathematical symbols - Appendices containing a list of... |
 |
Adaptive Optics Two-Photon Scanning Laser Fluorescence Microscopy: Design, Construction, Implementation by Yaopeng Zhou (Author) This work describes design, construction and use of a two-photon scanning laser fluorescence microscope (TPSLFM) improved by adaptive optics (AO) compensation to enable deeper subsurface imaging of mouse bone marrow. AO is found to be useful to compensate for degradation of image quality, particularly in deep tissue imaging where optical aberrations degrade TPSLFM resolution and contrast. An adaptive optics (AO) TPSLFM was developed to compensate the optical aberrations in the beam path to improve contrast and resolution in the mouse bone marrow subsurface imaging. The AO system relies on a deformable mirror (DM), which is controlled by using a stochastic parallel gradient descent (SPGD) algorithm optimized by feedback from a fluorescence sensor. It was... |
 |
FLIM Microscopy in Biology and Medicine by Ammasi Periasamy (Editor), Robert M. Clegg (Editor) Detecting Signals at the Single Molecule Level: Pioneering Achievements in Microscopy Recent advances have led to such remarkable improvements in fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy’s (FLIM) capacity for contrast and sensitivity that researchers can now employ it to detect signals at the single molecule level. FLIM also offers the additional benefit of independence from fluorophore concentration and excitation intensity. Moreover, its unique sensitivity makes it an excellent reporter of conformational changes and of variations in the molecular surroundings of biological molecules. Most of this improvement and discovery have occurred during the past decade, and, to date, information that would benefit a broad range of researchers remains scattered... |
 |
Fluorescence Microscopy (Volume 1) by F. W. D. Rost (Author) This new work in two volumes covers all aspects of fluorescence microscopy, including instrumentation, applications to a wide variety of fields, and the history of the technique. There is a chapter on quantitative techniques, including scanning, which is dealt with in more detail in a companion volume, Quantitative Fluorescence Microscopy. Volume 1 deals with instrumentation and techniques for fluorescence microscopy, and includes the chapter on quantitation and scanning. Volume 2 deals with the applications of fluorescence microscopy in many fields. It includes information on fluorocarbons and on autofluorescence. An invaluable appendix provides an alphabetical list of fluorochromes, giving information concerning chemical structure, fluorescence properties, applications, and... |
 |
Protein Localization by Fluorescence Microscopy: A Practical Approach (Practical Approach Series) by Victoria J. Allan (Editor) There is an ever-increasing number of genes that have been sequenced but are of completely unknown function. The ability to determine the location of such gene products within the cell, either by the use of antibodies or by the production of chimeras with green fluorescent protein, is a vital step towards understanding what they do. This is one major reason why fluorescence microscopy is enjoying a revival. This no-nonsense guide provides detailed, practical advice on all aspects of the subject: from choosing the right equipment, to interpreting results. It balances the advantages of a wide range of techniques-- including live cell work--against the potential pitfalls, offering invaluable "tricks of the trade" along the way. |
| © 2009 BrightSurf.com |