Abstract
Combining elemental, chemical, molecular, and morphological imaging information from individual cells with a lateral resolution well below 1 × 1 μm2 is the current technological challenge for investigating the smallest dimensions of living systems. In the race for such analytical performance, several techniques have been successfully developed; some use probes to determine given cellular contents whereas others use possible interactions between cellular matter with light or elements for characterization of contents. Morphological techniques providing information about cell dimensions have, when combined with other techniques, also opened the way to quantitative studies. New analytical opportunities are now being considered in cell biology, combining top-performance imaging techniques, applied to the same biosystem, with microscopy (nm–μm range) techniques providing elemental (micro-X-ray fluorescence, particle-induced X-ray emission, secondary-ion mass spectrometry), chemical (Raman, coherent anti-stokes Raman, Fourier-transform infrared, and near-field), molecular (UV–visible confocal and multiphoton), and morphological (AFM, ellipsometry, X-ray phase contrast, digital holography) information. Dedicated cell-culture methods have been proposed for multimodal imaging in vitro and/or ex vivo. This review shows that in addition to UV–fluorescent techniques, the imaging modalities able to provide interesting information about a cell, with high spatial and time resolution, have grown sufficiently to envisage quantitative analysis of chemical species inside subcellular compartments.
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Abbreviations
- AFM:
-
Atomic-force microscopy
- BAM:
-
Brewster-angle microscopy
- CARS:
-
Coherent anti-stokes Raman scattering
- CT:
-
Computed tomography
- DHM:
-
Digital holography microscopy
- ER:
-
Endoplasmic reticulum
- FOV:
-
Field of view
- FTIR:
-
Fourier-transform infrared
- GFP:
-
Green fluorescent protein
- MRI:
-
Magnetic resonance imaging
- OM:
-
Optical microscopy
- PET:
-
Positron-emission microscopy
- PIXE:
-
Particle-induced X-ray emission
- QDs:
-
Quantum dots
- SIMS:
-
Secondary-ion mass spectroscopy
- SNOM:
-
Scanning near-field optical microscopy
- SPECT:
-
Single-photon emission computed tomography
- STED:
-
Stimulated emission depletion
- UV-CF:
-
Ultraviolet–visible confocal fluorescence
- XR-PC:
-
X-ray phase contrast
- XRF:
-
X-ray fluorescence
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Acknowledgements
The author is indebted to “Ligue Contre le Cancer”, “Association Françasie contre les Myopathies”, and the “Agence Nationale pour la Recherche – ANR” for financial support.
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Petibois, C. Imaging methods for elemental, chemical, molecular, and morphological analyses of single cells. Anal Bioanal Chem 397, 2051–2065 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-010-3618-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-010-3618-7