Combined microscope aids cell understanding - Imaging - Brief Article

By combining advances in two existing imaging technologies, scientists at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory have created novel instrumentation that promises to improve the understanding of cells and has the potential to measure the effectiveness of chemotherapy. Called the combined optical and magnetic resonance microscope, this new capability merges magnetic resonance and optical microscopy in a powerful system to study cellular activity, such as cancer development or tumor death. Magnetic resonance microscopy utilizes the same methodologies as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), a technique used commonly in hospitals.

"This unique combination provides scientists with more information about cells than either technique offers individually," indicates Robert Wind, lead developer. "Because of this new approach, we'll have a more-accurate and complete picture of cellular activity, particularly events related to the development of cancer and other diseases and the cellular response to therapy. We're seeing details of the cell and its activity that haven't been viewed before."

Current approaches for studying cellular events include breaking up dead cells, which usually results in the loss of valuable information. In contrast, the combined microscope allows scientists to study live cells and how they respond to stresses over time simultaneously with two completely different microscopic techniques. The combined microscope takes advantage of optical microscopy's extremely high-resolution images and MRI's ability to capture physical and chemical information of cells, such as water properties and the presence of certain chemical compounds. Just as the microscopes are combined, the data obtained by each is integrated to provide a more-complete examination of the cell. The combined microscope will allow scientists to obtain more-accurate "signatures" of cell death.

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