3D Orbital Tracking in a Modified Two-photon Microscope: An Application to the Tracking of Intracellular Vesicles |
| |
Authors: | Andrea Anzalone Paolo Annibale Enrico Gratton |
| |
Affiliation: | 1Biomedical Engineering, Laboratory for Fluorescence Dynamics, University of California, Irvine |
| |
Abstract: | The objective of this video protocol is to discuss how to perform and analyze a three-dimensional fluorescent orbital particle tracking experiment using a modified two-photon microscope1. As opposed to conventional approaches (raster scan or wide field based on a stack of frames), the 3D orbital tracking allows to localize and follow with a high spatial (10 nm accuracy) and temporal resolution (50 Hz frequency response) the 3D displacement of a moving fluorescent particle on length-scales of hundreds of microns2. The method is based on a feedback algorithm that controls the hardware of a two-photon laser scanning microscope in order to perform a circular orbit around the object to be tracked: the feedback mechanism will maintain the fluorescent object in the center by controlling the displacement of the scanning beam3-5. To demonstrate the advantages of this technique, we followed a fast moving organelle, the lysosome, within a living cell6,7. Cells were plated according to standard protocols, and stained using a commercially lysosome dye. We discuss briefly the hardware configuration and in more detail the control software, to perform a 3D orbital tracking experiment inside living cells. We discuss in detail the parameters required in order to control the scanning microscope and enable the motion of the beam in a closed orbit around the particle. We conclude by demonstrating how this method can be effectively used to track the fast motion of a labeled lysosome along microtubules in 3D within a live cell. Lysosomes can move with speeds in the range of 0.4-0.5 µm/sec, typically displaying a directed motion along the microtubule network8. |
| |
Keywords: | Bioengineering Issue 92 fluorescence single particle tracking laser scanning microscope two-photon vesicle transport live-cell imaging optics |
|
|