Intravital microscopic interrogation of peripheral taste sensation

Intravital microscopy is a powerful tool in neuroscience but has not been adapted to the taste sensory organ due to anatomical constraint. Here we developed an imaging window to facilitate microscopic access to the murine tongue in vivo. Real-time two-photon microscopy allowed the visualization of three-dimensional microanatomy of the intact tongue mucosa and functional activity of taste cells in response to topically administered tastants in live mice. Video microscopy also showed the calcium activity of taste cells elicited by small-sized tastants in the blood circulation. Molecular kinetic analysis suggested that intravascular taste sensation takes place at the microvilli on the apical side of taste cells after diffusion of the molecules through the pericellular capillaries and tight junctions in the taste bud. Our results demonstrate the capabilities and utilities of the new tool for taste research in vivo

Mobile microscopy on the move

In this paper, we demonstrate the application of low cost light weight imaging device that amplifies the imaging resolution of a smartphone camera by three orders of magnitude from millimeters to sub-micrometers. We attached the lens onto a commercial smartphone camera and imaged micrometer graticules, pathological biological tissue slides and skin which validate the imaging quality of lenses

Optical trapping using ultrashort 12.9fs pulses

We demonstrate stable three-dimensional optical trapping of 780nm silica particles using a dispersion-compensated 12.9fs infrared pulsed laser and a trapping microscope system with 1.40NA objective. To achieve these pulse durations we use the Multiphoto

Resolving inter-particle position and optical forces along the axial direction using optical coherence gating

We demonstrate the use of coherence gating to resolve particle positions and forces in the axial direction. High depth resolvability (axial) and weak optical force (10-15 N) measurements in an optical trapping system is achieved

High speed multiphoton imaging

Intravital multiphoton microscopy has emerged as a powerful technique to visualize cellular processes in-vivo. Real time processes revealed through live imaging provided many opportunities to capture cellular activities in living animals. The typical parameters that determine the performance of multiphoton microscopy are speed, field of view, 3D imaging and imaging depth; many of these are important to achieving data from in-vivo. Here, we provide a full exposition of the flexible polygon mirror based high speed laser scanning multiphoton imaging system, PCI-6110 card (National Instruments) and high speed analog frame grabber card (Matrox Solios eA/XA), which allows for rapid adjustments between frame rates i.e. 5 Hz to 50 Hz with 512 x 512 pixels. Furthermore, a motion correction algorithm is also used to mitigate motion artifacts. A customized control software called Pscan 1.0 is developed for the system. This is then followed by calibration of the imaging performance of the system and a series of quantitative in-vitro and in-vivo imaging in neuronal tissues and mice

Design and fabrication of a passive droplet dispenser for portable high resolution imaging system

Design and fabrication of a passive droplet dispenser for portable high resolution imaging systemW. M. Lee acknowledges funding support from PBCRC innovation project fund, Discovery Translational Funds (DTF71) and fellowship support from FERL program and Australian Research Council Early Career Researcher Award (DE160100843

Stick-on microscope for smartphones

In this paper, I demonstrate a low cost light weight microscope device that is compatible with any smartphone camera. The device amplifies the imaging resolution of a smartphone camera by three orders of magnitude from millimeters to sub-micrometers, while costing approximately USD$ 2

PScan 1.0: flexible software framework for polygon based multiphoton microscopy

Multiphoton laser scanning microscopes exhibit highly localized nonlinear optical excitation and are powerful instruments for in-vivo deep tissue imaging. Customized multiphoton microscopy has a significantly superior performance for in-vivo imaging because of precise control over the scanning and detection system. To date, there have been several flexible software platforms catered to custom built microscopy systems i.e. ScanImage, HelioScan, MicroManager, that perform at imaging speeds of 30-100fps. In this paper, we describe a flexible software framework for high speed imaging systems capable of operating from 5 fps to 1600 fps. The software is based on the MATLAB image processing toolbox. It has the capability to communicate directly with a high performing imaging card (Matrox Solios eA/XA), thus retaining high speed acquisition. The program is also designed to communicate with LabVIEW and Fiji for instrument control and image processing. Pscan 1.0 can handle high imaging rates and contains sufficient flexibility for users to adapt to their high speed imaging systems. © (2016) COPYRIGHT Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE). Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only

Collinear non-diffracting beams: classification and properties

Non-diffracting laser modes and interfering non-diffracting beams have been extensively studied. Interfering nondiffracting beams generate novel laser modes. In this paper we accumulate various interfering conditions for nondiffracting beams and discuss the properties of the resultant beam. Contrasting intensity profiles and topological charge distribution are obtained on varying interfering conditions. Collinear propagation of non-diffracting laser beams is also reported