Nanovip All things Nanotechnology – Nano Is The Futiure
Starting at 10:00AM on June 24th, 2010
Current Imaging in Living Cells
Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
Cell is a fundamental building block underlying all biological systems. Countless efforts have been made from various fields of science and technology to better understand this complex system. With the existing research tools available today, it has been difficult, if not impossible, to perform nanoscale studies of single living cells. In particular, cellular membrane surfaces are transparent to optical microscopy methods, and too soft to produce any contrast or even endure probing by conventional Scanning Probe Microscopy (SPM).
Now, we are opening a new chapter in the study of live cells using Ion Conductance Microscopy (ICM). Thistechnological advancement may provide a unique and unprecedented opportunity in single live cell studies by enabling targeted localized stimulation and non-destructive monitoring of cellular activity heretofore inaccessible to other analytical techniques. In the ICM, a glass nanopipette filled with an electrolyte senses ion current to feedback its position relative to samples completely immersed in a liquid buffer. Since the tip-sample distance is maintained by keeping the ionic current constant instead of applying a physical force to the sample, it is an ideal tool to obtain a stable image of soft biological sample features, such as cellular membranes. Whereas traditional SEM imaging necessitated killing the sample, in ICM biological processes can be observed while in action.
This series of keynote and invited and contributed talks will cover the recent advances in live cell measurements using Ion Conductance Microscopy (ICM) techniques, as well as the state of the art SPM studies of various biological systems. The meeting will also include an equipment lab for demonstration of the XE-Bio and various ICM imaging techniques. Ultimately, our goal is to build a network of scientists centered on the applications of ICM and topromote dissemination of theoretical knowledge, experimental protocols, and novel technique development in this rapidly growing area.