Imaging the living activity of cells
Abstract
Cells are the fundamental building blocks of life. They are complex active materials with dynamical mechanical properties governed by a network of microtubules and filaments, interconnected with motor molecules and proteins. Microscopes of various forms are able to image the static structure of cells. However, it remains challenging to temporally resolve the underlying motional dynamics that drive their function. Indeed, while living cells are constantly in microscopic motion, with millions of molecular machines driving them, this motion is generally invisible to existing microscopes. This project aims to close this gap, building two new microscope technologies capable of resolving the fast motion of biological materials. The first, which we term a bioactivity frequency mapping (BFM) microscope, will use quantum-limited light scattering techniques developed in our laboratory to isolate motional signatures of specific motor proteins and enzymes, producing whole-cell dynamic heat-maps of their bioactivity. The second, a ballistic optical tweezer, will allow cellular viscoelasticity to be measured at tens of microsecond speeds, extending the state of the art by four orders-of-magnitude. This will for the first time allow access to the dynamical fluctuations in viscoelasticity thought to exist during cellular processes. Both microscopes will be proved in biological applications, first at the University of Queensland and then, in a parallel AFOSR project, by our collaborators at Johns Hopkins University. For instance, we will use our BFM microscope to map the activities of different motor molecules as cells undergo key processes such as mitosis and apoptosis, and use our ballistic optical tweezer to measure the dynamics of single receptor binding events with speeds far beyond existing technologies. Together, we believe this will open a transformative new window on the nanoscale dynamics of biology, substantiating the importance of rapid biomechanical processes which have so far been mostly neglected. The project is directly aligned to the goals of the AFOSR Biophysics Program in the areas of quantum biology and bio-molecular imaging. It will shed light on some of the most fundamental processes in biology. This will ultimately improve our understanding of how sub-cellular stressors and stimuli effect human performance, and provide insights into how to build novel biologically inspired materials to the benefit of the Air Force.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Mar 07, 2023
- Source ID
- FA95502210047
Entities
People
- Warwick Bowen
Organizations
- Air Force Office of Scientific Research
- United States Air Force
- University of Queensland