Multi-Modal Multi-Spectral Intravital Microscopic Imaging of Signaling Dynamics in Real-Time during Tumor–Immune Interactions
Abstract
Intravital microscopic imaging (IVM) allows for the study of interactions between immune cells and tumor cells in a dynamic, physiologically relevant system in vivo. Current IVM strategies primarily use fluorescence imaging; however, with the advances in bioluminescence imaging and the development of new bioluminescent reporters with expanded emission spectra, the applications for bioluminescence are extending to single cell imaging. Herein, we describe a molecular imaging window chamber platform that uniquely combines both bioluminescent and fluorescent genetically encoded reporters, as well as exogenous reporters, providing a powerful multi-plex strategy to study molecular and cellular processes in real-time in intact living systems at single cell resolution all in one system. We demonstrate that our molecular imaging window chamber platform is capable of imaging signaling dynamics in real-time at cellular resolution during tumor progression. Importantly, we expand the utility of IVM by modifying an off-the-shelf commercial system with the addition of bioluminescence imaging achieved by the addition of a CCD camera and demonstrate high quality imaging within the reaches of any biology laboratory.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Pub Defense Publication
- Publication Date
- Feb 26, 2021
- Source ID
- 10.3390/cells10030499
Entities
People
- David Piwnica-Worms
- Seth Gammon
- Tracy Liu
Organizations
- National Institutes of Health
- The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
- United States Department of Defense