用近场光学显微镜观察红细胞的自发荧光

传统的自体荧光检测技术均是对大量细胞或组织进行检测,而近场光学显微技术由于具有较高分辨率和能够同时获取样品的外部形貌和光学信息等特点,有望成为一种研究单个细胞自体发光机理、疾病诊断和检测单个细胞自体荧光光谱的新技术。本文通过应用近场光学显微镜观察不同形状红细胞的外部形貌和光学信息,来初步探讨近场光学显微技术在这方面的应用前景。     

生物组织光学特性的时间分辨透射测量

基于时域漫射理论,提出一种用透射光来确定生物组织光学特性的方法。通过对生物组织的模拟测量,结果表明：此方法具有算法简单,速度快,精度高等优点,并比较了透射和反射两种测量法的精度。     

光学显微镜的新技术

与光学显微观察有关的技术拟可分为两方面:制样技术和光学显微镜技术.自50年代以来前者一直在不断改进.出现特异组织成份染色、荧光技术、免疫酶标、免疫金银法等新技术,使观察的特异性不断提高.相比之下光学显微镜(以下简称光镜)的基本构造和观察清晰度没有明显改善.80年代以来,随着科学技术的飞速发展和计算机与图象处理技术的引入,传统的光镜已经与庞杂的辅助装置结合起来形成了若干新型的光学显微系统.特别是光源与显示部份的改进大大提高了成象清晰度,甚至可对小于光镜理论分辨力的亚细胞结构进行动态观察,从而弥补了光镜分辨力低与电镜只能观察静态标本的不足.这为进一步从亚细胞和分子水平将结构与功能结合起来研究提供了新的技术手段.本文仅就有关进展做一扼要介绍.     

近场光学显微术在生物大分子探测与功能研究中的应用

近场光学显微术是唯一一种具有单分子探测灵敏度,且在对生物样品研究时无损伤的一门新兴的高分辨光学显微术,它是根据近场光学理论在扫描探针显微术的基础上发展起来的。它突破了传统光学显微术衍射极限的限制,可在不损伤样品的情况下同时获得其形貌像和光学像,故在探测单个生物分子并研究其结构和功能以及分子间的相互作用等方面具有显著优势。本文主要介绍近几年来近场光学显微术在生物分子探测和功能研究,以及在分子生物学研究中的应用与进展。     

免标记光学纳米生物传感器的研究

利用发光稳定的多孔硅,当蛋白质溶液固定到多孔硅表面时,其发光强度和反射光谱的峰位会随着被测物质量浓度的变化而发生变化的特性。制备免标记光学纳米生物传感器来检测牛血清白蛋白（BSA）,把不同质量浓度的BSA溶液固定到多孔硅上测量反射光谱的峰位和荧光强度的变化。实验结果表明：反射光谱的峰位与牛血清白蛋白的浓度呈线性关系：y=1．4189x＋366．31,R^2=0．9898;荧光强度的降低量与BSA溶液的浓度呈线性关系,检测限为8×10^-9 mol／L。     

近红外光学成像技术及其在神经科学中的应用

近红外光学成像技术是近年发展起来的一种动态检测脑功能的方法。采用这种技术可以测量在脑活动时氧合血红蛋白、脱氧血红蛋白和细胞色素氧化酶等的变化,同时得到与刺激相关的细胞内和细胞外活动的改变。近红外光学成像技术的时间分辨率较高,并具有简便易行、价格低廉和无损伤性等特点,有望可以同时检测神经元活动、能量代谢以有血液动力学的变化。目前它已作为检验功能性磁共振成像原理的一种方法,并在认知神经科学和医学等的研究中得到越来越广泛的应用。     

近场扫描光学成像结合量子点标记的纳米技术在细胞生物学中的应用

近场扫描光学显微镜（NSOM）对传统的光学分辨极限产生了革命性的突破,可在超高光学分辨率下无侵人性和无破坏性地对生物样品进行观测。量子点（QDs）具有极好的光学性能,如荧光寿命长、激发谱宽、生物相容性强、光稳定性好等优点,适合先进的生物成像。NSOM结合QDs标记的纳米技术被应用在细胞生物学中。通过纳米量级NSOM免疫荧光成像（50nm）对特定蛋白分子在细胞表面的动态分布进行可视化研究和数量化分析,阐明了蛋白分子在不同细胞过程中的作用机制。因此,NSOM／QD基成像系统提供了单个蛋白分子最高分辨率的荧光图像,为可视化研究蛋白分子机制的提供了一种强有力的工具。     

多元光学蛋白质芯片研究取得重要进展

蛋白质芯片技术是一种新型蛋白质分析技术,具有集成、并行、快速和自动化分析的优势。多元光学蛋白质芯片传感器,仅需微量生理或生物采样,即可以同时检测、识别和纯化不同的生物分子和研究分子间的相互作用。无需标记,可以直接测量像血浆、细胞裂解液等生理样品。     

单细胞光学操纵方法研究进展

随着单细胞测序技术的发展,人们对细胞异质性的关注越来越密切.单细胞操纵是研究细胞异质性的前提.基于光与物质的相互作用可以实现细胞的光学操纵,本文主要综述了激光显微切割、光镊、激光诱导前向转移和光流体等光学操纵方法的原理与应用.光学操纵无需接触,对细胞污染小、损伤小,而且易于和其他技术集成,对单细胞操纵和分析具有重要意义.     

活体动物体内光学成像技术的研究进展

生物发光和荧光成像作为近年来新兴的活体动物体内光学成像技术,以其操作简便及直观性成为研究小动物活体成像的一种理想方法,在生命科学研究中得以不断发展。利用这种成像技术,可以直接实时观察标记的基因及细胞在活体动物体内的活动及反应。利用光学标记的转基因动物模型可以研究疾病的发生发展过程,进行药物研究及筛选等。本文综述了现有活体动物体内光学成像技术的原理、应用领域及发展前景,比较了生物发光与几种荧光技术的不同特点和应用。     

Near-Field Optical Imaging of a Porous Au Film: Influences of Topographic Artifacts and Surface Plasmons

In this work, near-field scanning optical microscopy is employed to study a porous Au film and the direct observation of topographic artifacts and surface plasmon influences is revealed. Under tip illumination, topographic artifacts are found to be present in a reflection mode optical image but not in a transmission mode image. A simple algorithm is used for filtering the topographic artifacts and extracting a correct near-field optical image approximately. On the other hand, surface plasmon influences are present in both modes. By using three exciting wavelengths of 488, 647.1, and 520.8 nm, it is confirmed that a suitable wavelength should be chosen for avoiding the surface plasmon interference in a near-field optical investigation of morphological or material dielectric contrast. Finally, plasmonic or nonplasmonic regions on the porous Au film can be identified from the observed optical intensity variation in the optical images obtained at incident polarizations of 0°, 90°, and 45°.     

Near-Field Scanning Optical Microscopy, a Siren Call to Biology

Near-field illumination of a sample with visible light can resolve features well beyond the resolution of conventional, far-field microscopes. Near-field scanning optical microscopy (NSOM) then has the potential of extending the resolution of techniques such as fluorescent labeling, yielding images of cell structures and molecules on the nanoscale. However, major problems remain to be solved before NSOM can be easily used for wet biological samples. The most significant of these is control of the distance between near-field aperture and the sample surface. Hence, while NSOM promises much, its application to biology is about where electron microscopy was 40 or 50 years ago.     

Near-field scanning optical microscopy in cell biology

Near-field optics has produced the highest optical resolution that has ever been achieved. The methods involved lie at the interface of far-field optical microscopy and scanned probe microscopy. This article describes the principles behind near-field scanning optical microscopy (NSOM) and highlights its potential in cell biology.     

The optical near-field and cell biology

A new form of scanning light microscopy is described in which the lens is replaced by a point of light that is smaller than the wavelength. Resolution is obtained that is defined not by the wavelength but by the size of the spot of light. This is the case so long as the point of light is within the dimension of a wavelength from the surface that is to imaged or within the optical near-field. This new form of light microscopy is called near-field scanning optical microscopy (NSOM). Resolutions are being obtained with NSOM that are similar to scanning electron microscopy but without the destructive effects of a vacuum or of an electron beam. In addition such a microscope is readily interfaced with fluorescent and non-fluorescent contrast enhancing stains that are commonly used in cell biology. The possibility of a near-field/far-field microscope is discussed with overlapping resolutions from a few hundred of a conventional microscope to the tens of thousand that can be obtained with NSOM.     

A method for micrometer resolution patterning of primary culture neurons for SPM analysis

In this work we present a method for ultra-fine patterning of primary culture neuron cell growth, which is compatible for scanning near-field optical atomic force microscopy (SNOAM) analysis. SNOAM uses near-field optics to break the fundamental diffraction limit imposed on normal microscopy. SNOAM can achieve sub-100 nm optical resolutions, but requires transparent, open substrates. The ability to do physiological measurements on patterns of neurons, combined with ultra high resolution optical and fluorescent analysis, is useful in the study of long-term potentiation. The patterning method consists of chemical guidance with an element of physical confinement and allows for ultra-fine patterning of neural growth on transparent glass substrates. Substrates consist of microfabricated perfluoropolymer barrier structures on glass. Poly-L-lysine was selectively deposited using a silicone-based microfluidic stencil aligned to the perfluoropolymer/glass substrate. Primary culture neurons were extracted from 8-day-old chicks and grown for 3 days to form good networks. This patterning system shows very specific growth with patterning separations down to the level of individual neurites. Fluorescent imaging was carried out on both cell viability during growth and immuno-tagged microtubule-associated proteins on the neurites. Neurons inside the patterned structures were imaged and analyzed with a tapping mode SNOAM.     

Visualization of silver-enhanced reaction products from protein- and immuno-colloidal gold probes by laser scanning confocal microscopy in leflection mode

We have employed a laser scanning confocal microscope in reflection mode to directly and indirectly visualize sites of deposition of silver-enhanced reaction products from colloidal gold probes. A direct approach was used for the localization of alpha-fetoprotein receptors in human myoblasts by incubating primary cultures with an alpha-fetoprotein-gold conjugate. For an indirect approach, cultured CEM cells, derived from a human T-lymphoma cell line, were incubated with a mouse monoclonal antibody to mature T-cells, followed by a gold-labelled antibody to mouse immunglobulins. Multiple optical sections of each sample were collected by reflection laser scanning confocal microscopy and combined into three-dimensional renderings. A (non-confocal) transmission image was generated of each field for comparative purposes. The increasing use of reflection laser scanning confocal microscopy combined with colloidal gold conjugates as biological markes will probably be of considerable advantage in cytochemical analysis.     

Near-field optics: from subwavelength illumination to nanometric shadowing

Near-field optics uniquely addresses problems of x, y and z resolution by spatially confining the effect of a light source to nanometric domains. The problems in using far-field optics (conventional optical imaging through a lens) to achieve nanometric spatial resolution are formidable. Near-field optics serves a bridging role in biology between optical imaging and scanned probe microscopy. The integration of near-field and scanned probe imaging with far-field optics thus holds promise for solving the so-called inverse problem of optical imaging.     

Near-Field Optical Experimental Investigation of Gold Nanohole Array

Gold nanohole arrays are fabricated with focused ion beam irradiating gold thin film supported on quartz substrate. The topography of the nanohole arrays is characterized using an atomic force microscope, and the near-field optical transmission properties of the nanohole array are investigated with a near-field scanning optical microscope. Our experimental results verify the near-optical transmission performance and further demonstrate that they are in agreement with the theoretical calculation results. The enhanced optical transmission of the nanohole arrays are expected to be used for a variety of applications in sensor and photonics devices.     

Antenna-Attached Parabolic Probe for Excitation and Collection Modes in SNOM

A novel optical fiber probe with a parabola-like shape and a nano-antenna mounted on the center of its endface is proposed for simultaneous excitation and collection modes in scanning near-field optical microscopy. The working principles of the probe are demonstrated, and its optical properties are theoretically investigated and compared with the conventional tip-on-aperture probe. It shows that the probe can greatly boost both the enhancement factor for the excitation mode and the collection efficiency for the collection mode. The proposed probe is a promising tool to realize low-cost and high resolution for a wide variety of near-field measurements in biology, physics, and chemistry.     

Performance of Scanning Near-Field Optical Microscope Probes with Single Groove and Various Metal Coatings

We investigate the performance of a simple corrugated aperture scanning near-field optical microscope (SNOM) probe with various cladding metals. The probes have only one corrugation, however, they offer increased transmission over both uncorrugated probes and those with many grooves. Enhancement of light throughput results from excitation of surface plasmons at the corrugation at the core–cladding interface. We show how the choice of metal influences radiation properties of grooved probes.