Fluorescence Recovery after Photobleaching (FRAP) and its Offspring
FRAP (Fluorescence recovery after photobleaching) can be used to study cellular protein dynamics: For visualization the protein of interest is fused to a fluorescent protein or a fluorescent dye. A…
Förster Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET)
The Förster Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET) phenomenon offers techniques that allow studies of interactions in dimensions below the optical resolution limit. FRET describes the transfer of the energy…
An Introduction to CARS Microscopy
CARS overcomes the drawbacks of conventional staining methods by the intrinsic characteristics of the method. CARS does not require labeling because it is highly specific to molecular compounds which…
Mosaic Images
Confocal laser scanning microscopes are widely used to create highly resolved 3D images of cells, subcellular structures and even single molecules. Still, an increasing number of scientists are…
Confocal Optical Section Thickness
Confocal microscopes are employed to optically slice comparably thick samples.
Optical Contrast Methods
Optical contrast methods give the potential to easily examine living and colorless specimens. Different microscopic techniques aim to change phase shifts caused by the interaction of light with the…
Integrated Modulation Contrast (IMC)
Hoffman modulation contrast has established itself as a standard for the observation of unstained, low-contrast biological specimens. The integration of the modulator in the beam path of themodern…
New Standard in Electrophysiology and Deep Tissue Imaging
The function of nerve and muscle cells relies on ionic currents flowing through ion channels. These ion channels play a major role in cell physiology. One way to investigate ion channels is to use…
The History of Stereo Microscopy
This article gives an overview on the history of stereo microscopes. The development and evolution from handcrafted instruments (late 16th to mid-18th century) to mass produced ones the last 150…
