Three-dimensional imaging of a cell will help understand the cellular structure and their functions in the cells more in detail. The lack of the right techniques in cell microscopy has inhibited scientists from having a deeper look into the cells microstructures and inside the cells.
A paper published by Cell Press in its October 4th issue of the Biophysical Journal explains that microscopy using helium ions might add even better clarity to surface and sub-surface cell imaging.
The commonly used Electron microscope beams electrons on a sample to provide a magnified high resolution image of the sub-cellular structure. Electrons are beamed since their wavelengths are much shorter than the photons’ wavelengths thus delivering high resolution images. The electron microscope has a limitation, for the biological cell sample requires to be coated with a microscopic coating of metal that is electrically conductive. For high resolution imaging of thick samples the electrons from the electron microscope scatter owing to this micro metallic conductive coating thus rendering the microscope to be inefficient for high resolution three-dimensional microscopic imaging of whole cells.
To get this in depth high resolution image a microscopic probe is required to penetrate the cells and yet maintain its size and measures the signals around the penetrated area to give a high resolution reading through a scanning beam microscope as explained by Dr.Frank Watts, from the National University of Singapore. In line with this, the microscopy using Helium ions creates a similar setting wherein the slow moving helium ions image at sub-nanometer resolutions insulating the biological surfaces thereby eliminating the metallic conductive coating. However, the faster helium ions image the cell interiors with the same high resolution.
Source: http://www.cell.com