Science Lab

The knowledge portal of Leica Microsystems offers scientific research and teaching material on the subjects of microscopy. The content is designed to support beginners, experienced practitioners and scientists alike in their everyday work and experiments. Explore interactive tutorials and application notes, discover the basics of microscopy as well as high-end technologies – become part of the Science Lab community and share your expertise!

Images from 2 time-lapse series of the same Sf21 moth larval cells illuminated with: TIRF mode. Images were acquired with the DMi8 S Infinity TIRF HP system. Courtesy of Domokos Lauko, Welch Lab, Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, USA.

Studying Actin Cytoskeleton and Microfilament Assembly

This article demonstrates how actin microfilament assemblies can be clearly visualized with superior resolution at the plasma membrane of a cell using a DMi8 S Infinity TIRF High Power imaging…

Plant Cell Development and Morphogenesis

The article discusses how tubulin molecules, which make up microtubules, in plant cells can be studied with total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF) microscopy to better understand tubulin…

Where to go? Cellular Migration requires coordinated Transitions of Actin Cortex

Plants, Bacteria, and Fungi possess a rigid cell wall that protects the cell and gives it shape. Animal cells, such as mammalian cells, have no outer wall, which exposes their plasma membrane to the…

Video Talk by Daniel Axelrod: Total Internal Reflection Fluorescence (TIRF) Microscopy

Total Internal Reflection Fluorescence (TIRF) Microscopy is a technique that only illuminates dye molecules near a surface. In this video, the pioneer of TIRF Microscopy describes what this technique…

Universal PAINT – Dynamic Super-Resolution Microscopy

Super-resolution microscopy techniques have revolutionized biology for the last ten years. With their help cellular components can now be visualized at the size of a protein. Nevertheless, imaging…

Sample Preparation for GSDIM Localization Microscopy – Protocols and Tips

The widefield super-resolution technique GSDIM (Ground State Depletion followed by individual molecule return) is a localization microscopy technique that is capable of resolving details as small as…

Controlling the TIRF Penetration Depth is Mandatory for Reproducible Results

The main feature of total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF) microscopy is the employment of an evanescent wave for the excitation of fluorophores instead of using direct light. A property of the…

TIRF image of brest carcinoma tumor cells expressing GFP tagged cell adhesion Molecule CD44 that is expressed on the cell membrane, imagined in TIRF.

Total Internal Reflection Fluorescence (TIRF) Microscopy

Total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF) is a special technique in fluorescence microscopy developed by Daniel Axelrod at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor in the early 1980s. TIRF microscopy…

Super-Resolution GSDIM Microscopy

The nanoscopic technique GSDIM (ground state depletion microscopy followed by individual molecule return) provides a detailed image of the spatial arrangement of proteins and other biomolecules within…