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ESEM imaging of dynamic biological processes: the closure of stomatal poresEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Historically, electron microscopy of dynamic biological processes has been impossible to achieve in real time because conventional electron microscopy requires specimen fixation, dehydration and metallic coating. The advent of the environmental scanning electron microscope removes these restrictions, allowing fully hydrated samples to be imaged in their native state. We explore the possibility of secondary electron imaging of biological systems undergoing natural morphological changes in the microscope chamber and present a proof of principle study on the closure of stomatal pores in Tradescantia andersonia leaf tissue. An...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - November 20, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: J.E. McGREGOR, A.M. DONALD Source Type: journals

Recrystallization of plane strain compressed Al–1 wt.% Mn alloy single crystals of typical unstable orientationsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
A systematic study of crystal lattice reorientation in early stages of recrystallization has been carried out to correlate the orientations of recrystallization nuclei with the deformation microtexture and with slip systems. Microstructure and texture of Al[ndash]1 wt.% Mn single crystals of unstable initial orientations of {112}〈111〉, {100}〈001〉 and {001}〈110〉 have been examined by high-resolution field-emission gun scanning electron microscope local orientation measurements. All single crystals were channel-die deformed at room temperature and then annealed for a short time. It w...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - November 19, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: M. BIJAK, H. PAUL, J.H. DRIVER Source Type: journals

TEM studies of plasma nitrided austenitic stainless steelEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy and X-ray phase analysis were used to study the structure of a layer formed during nitriding the AISI 316L stainless steel at temperature 440°C. It was found that the applied treatment led to the formation of 6-[mu]m-thick layer of the S-phase. There is no evidence of CrN precipitation. The X-ray diffraction experiments proved that the occurred austenite lattice expansion [ndash] due to nitrogen atoms [ndash] depended on the crystallographic direction. The cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy studies showed that the layer consisted of a single cubic phase that c...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - November 19, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: D. STRÓŻ, M. PSODA Source Type: journals

Depth measurements of etch-pits in GaN with shape reconstruction from SEM imagesEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
The method, which allows shape reconstruction by reading the intensity from the scanning electron microscopy image, is presented and discussed in details. The method is applied to read the morphology of etch-pits, which were formed on the GaN surface by etching in molten KOH[ndash]NaOH eutectic mixture to delineate dislocations. The etch-pit depth distributions are obtained and used to determine densities of pits related to screw, mixed or edge-type dislocations. The results are compared with atomic force microscopy. (Source: Journal of Microscopy)
Source: Journal of Microscopy - November 19, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: M. WZOREK, A. CZERWINSKI, J. RATAJCZAK, A. LUI, E. IACOB, J. KĄTCKI Source Type: journals

TEM studies of melt-spun alloys with liquid miscibility gapEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
The microstructures of the Fe[ndash]Cu-based alloys melt-spun from various temperatures are presented. Two compositions, with different Fe and Cu content, revealing liquid miscibility gap, were studied. Nonuniform, large-elongated areas were observed for lower melt-spinning temperatures, indicating liquid/liquid phase separation in the crucible before cooling. An increase of the melt ejection temperature, followed by rapid cooling, brought about precipitation process within homogeneous melt. Studies of the system with higher Fe content proved amorphous nature of the matrix and crystalline structure of the primary formed Cu...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - November 19, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: T. KOZIEŁ, Z. KĘDZIERSKI, A. ZIELIŃSKA-LIPIEC, J. LATUCH, G. CIEŚLAK Source Type: journals

Electron detection in the intermediate chamber of the variable pressure SEMEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Two concepts of the secondary electron detection inside the intermediate chamber of the variable pressure scanning electron microscopy have been discussed. One of them, the two-stage secondary electron detector has been the subject of previous publications. The other one, the intermediate secondary electron detector is an improved solution in respect of its complexity, vacuum demands and dimensions. Both detector systems apply some kinds of scintillators, so they present advantages specific for scintillator detectors but extended to a wide range of gas pressures, from high vacuum to pressures exceeding 10 mbar. The detecto...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - November 19, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: W. SLÓWKO, M. KRYSZTOF Source Type: journals

Dependence of cathodoluminescence on layer resistance applied for measurement of thin-layer sheet resistanceEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
The dependence of spatially and spectrally resolved cathodoluminescence in a scanning electron microscope on resistances in semiconductor structures, especially on the layer resistance, is reported. This previously unstudied dependence is utilized for thin-layer sheet-resistance measurement. The method is illustrated by an assessment of lateral confinements in semiconductor-laser heterostructures. (Source: Journal of Microscopy)
Source: Journal of Microscopy - November 19, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: A. CZERWINSKI, M. PLUSKA, J. RATAJCZAK, A. SZERLING, J. KąTCKI Source Type: journals

Shear banding phenomenon in a Cu–8 at.% Al alloy analysed by orientation imaging microscopyEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
The microstructure and texture of Cu[ndash]8 at.% Al alloy single crystal with (112)[11] orientation plane strain compressed at 77 K were characterized by scanning electron microscope and transmission electron microscope orientation mappings in order to investigate the influence of twins and shear bands on slip propagation across a structure of twin-matrix layers and the resulting texture evolution. It was shown that the strong, initial texture changes are due to deformation twinning at low deformations. At larger deformations, twin-matrix bending within some narrow areas led to the formation of kink-type bands, which beca...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - November 19, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: H. PAUL, A. MORAWIEC, M. DARRIEULAT, E. BOUZY Source Type: journals

Identification of electron beam vibration sources by separation of magnetic distortion from electric distortion on scanning electron microscope imagingEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Different types of distortions in scanning electron microscopy require different methods of their elimination, and therefore influence of these types on particular elements of the SEM system should be known. The proposed method allows for separation of the direct influence of the magnetic field on the electron beam in the SEM chamber from its influence in the SEM column and from the distortions generated in the SEM scanning block. For this purpose, a series of distorted images is registered for several working distances (between the final aperture of the electron column and the specimen) and for several energies of the ele...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - November 19, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: M. PLUSKA, A. CZERWINSKI, J. RATAJCZAK, J. KĄTCKI, Ł. OSKWAREK, R. RAK Source Type: journals

TEM characterization of MBE grown CdTe/ZnTe axial nanowiresEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
CdTe/ZnTe axial nanowires were successfully fabricated by molecular beam epitaxy with the use of Au nano-catalysts and vapour[ndash]liquid[ndash]solid growth mechanism. Nanowires had zinc-blende structure with numerous stacking faults in the bottom ZnTe part and near perfect crystalline structure in the top CdTe part. Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDXS) and lattice fringe spacing analysis revealed nonabrupt nature of hetero[minus]interface, whose width was estimated to be 50[ndash]70 nm for the nanowires having a diameter in the range from 40 to 50 nm. (Source: Journal of Microscopy)
Source: Journal of Microscopy - November 19, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: P. DŁUZEWSKI, E. JANIK, S. KRET, W. ZALESZCZYK, D. TANG, G. KARCZEWSKI, T. WOJTOWICZ Source Type: journals

Microstructural changes during creep of CMSX-4 single crystal Ni base superalloy at 750°CEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
TEM studies of creep tested CMSX-4 nickel-base single crystal superalloy were performed to analyse a microstructure evolution during creep at temperature 750°C, and uniaxial tensile stress of 675 MPa. Microstructural analyses were focused mainly on examination of dislocation configurations during primary and secondary creep stages of high temperature deformation. At such low temperature and high stress creep deformation proceed by cutting of [gamma]' particles by dislocations. It was found that primary creep is initiated by movement of dislocations with Burgers vector a/2 in the [gamma] phase. The second type of dislocati...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - November 19, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: B. T. DUBIEL, A. CZYRSKA-FILEMONOWICZ Source Type: journals

Advances in phase-sensitive acoustic microscopy studies of polymer blend films: annealing effects and micro-elastic characterization of PS/PMMA blendsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
The unique phase-sensitive acoustic microscope is used for the structural and mechanical characterization of thin films of polystyrene/polymethylmethacrylate blends. The effect of annealing on blends of polystyrene/polymethylmethacrylate spin coated from different solvents unto a substrate is studied. Varying the solvents according to vapour pressure and spin coating at different speeds (for thickness variation) led to changes in phase domain distributions and overall structural properties before annealing. Annealing in vacuum at 190°C for 48 h resulted in the elimination of solvent effects with all samples reverting to a...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - November 11, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: A.E. KAMANYI, W. GRILL, W. NGWA, W. LUO Source Type: journals

Characterizing voltage contrast in photoelectron emission microscopyEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
A non-destructive technique for obtaining voltage contrast information with photoelectron emission microscopy is described. Samples consisting of electrically isolated metal lines were used to quantify voltage contrast in photoelectron emission microscopy. The voltage contrast behaviour is characterized by comparing measured voltage contrast with calculated voltage contrast from two electrostatic models. Measured voltage contrast was found to agree closely with the calculated voltage contrast, demonstrating that voltage contrast in photoelectron emission microscopy can be used to probe local voltage information in microele...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - November 10, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: V.K. SANGWAN, V.W. BALLAROTTO, K. SIEGRIST, E.D. WILLIAMS Source Type: journals

Four-dimensional telomere analysis in recordings of living human cells acquired with Controlled Light Exposure MicroscopyEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
We present a toolbox for determining telomere positions within the nucleus with subresolution accuracy and tracking telomeres in 4D controlled light exposure microscopy (CLEM) recordings. The use of CLEM allowed for durable imaging and thereby improved segmentation performance considerably. With minor modifications, the underlying algorithms can be expanded to the analysis of other intranuclear features, such as nuclear bodies or DNA double stranded break foci. (Source: Journal of Microscopy)
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 28, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: W.H. DE VOS, G.H. JOSS, W. HAFFMANS, R.A. HOEBE, E.M.M. MANDERS, P. VAN OOSTVELDT Source Type: journals

Reducing scanning electron microscope charging by using exponential contrast stretching technique on post-processing imagesEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
An exponential contrast stretching (ECS) technique is developed to reduce the charging effects on scanning electron microscope images. Compared to some of the conventional histogram equalization methods, such as bi-histogram equalization and recursive mean-separate histogram equalization, the proposed ECS method yields better image compensation. Diode sample chips with insulating and conductive surfaces are used as test samples to evaluate the efficiency of the developed algorithm. The algorithm is implemented in software with a frame grabber card, forming the front-end video capture element. (Source: Journal of Microscopy)
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 27, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: K.S. SIM, Y.Y. TAN, M.A. LAI, C.P. TSO, W.K. LIM Source Type: journals

Stereological estimation of the total number of ventilatory units in mice lungsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
We present an unbiased estimator of the total number of alveolar structures distal to the transition from a bronchiole to an alveolar duct system ('ventilatory units', VUs). In species without respiratory bronchioles, including mice, the number of VUs is equivalent to the number of acini. The acinus is a functional unit of gas exchange, defined as a parenchymal unit distal to a terminal bronchiole in which all airways contain alveoli and thus participate in gas exchange. The estimator combines two different estimators of the number of VUs: (1) an estimator derived from the Euler number of all the openings of the bronchial ...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 27, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: D. WULFSOHN, J. KNUST, M. OCHS, J.R. NYENGAARD, H.J.G. GUNDERSEN Source Type: journals

NanoSIMS imaging of Bacillus spores sectioned by focused ion beamEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Preparation and sectioning of bacterial spores by focused ion beam and subsequent high resolution secondary ion mass spectrometry analytical imaging is demonstrated. Scanning transmission electron microscopy mode imaging in a scanning electron microscope is used to show that the internal structure of the bacterial spore can be preserved during focused ion beam sectioning and can be imaged without contrast staining. Ion images of the sections show that the internal elemental distributions of the sectioned spores are preserved. A rapid focused ion beam top-sectioning method is demonstrated to yield comparable ion images with...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 27, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: P.K. WEBER, G.A. GRAHAM, N.E. TESLICH, W. MOBERLY CHAN, S. GHOSAL, T.J. LEIGHTON, K.E. WHEELER Source Type: journals

Image analysis benchmarking methods for high-content screen designEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
The recent development of complex chemical and small interfering RNA (siRNA) collections has enabled large-scale cell-based phenotypic screening. High-content and high-throughput imaging are widely used methods to record phenotypic data after chemical and small interfering RNA treatment, and numerous image processing and analysis methods have been used to quantify these phenotypes. Currently, there are no standardized methods for evaluating the effectiveness of new and existing image processing and analysis tools for an arbitrary screening problem. We generated a series of benchmarking images that represent commonly encoun...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 23, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: C.J. FULLER, A.F. STRAIGHT Source Type: journals

A histopathological study of the pulp of dogs' teeth after induction of experimental pulp inflammation for different periods of timeEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
The purpose of this study was to investigate the reaction of the pulp of dogs' teeth after insertion of soft carious dentin from freshly extracted human teeth into the buccal cavities for short and longer periods of time. Forty-seven mature lower and upper teeth were used in this study. On the middle of the buccal side of the teeth, 3 × 5 mm class [nu] cavities were prepared, soft carious dentin from freshly extracted human teeth was inserted into the floor of the cavity, and those were filled with glass ionomer. The dogs were killed after 7, 14, 28 and 47 days using vital perfusion techniques. Six-micrometre sections wer...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 22, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: A. SHAHRAVAN, J. GHODDUSI, B. ESLAMI, A.F. RATEGAR Source Type: journals

Combining FIB milling and conventional Argon ion milling techniques to prepare high-quality site-specific TEM samples for quantitative EELS analysis of oxygen in molten ironEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
This paper reports a procedure to combine the focused ion beam micro-sampling method with conventional Ar-milling to prepare high-quality site-specific transmission electron microscopy cross-section samples. The advantage is to enable chemical and structural evaluations of oxygen dissolved in a molten iron sample to be made after quenching and recovery from high-pressure experiments in a laser-heated diamond anvil cell. The evaluations were performed by using electron energy-loss spectroscopy and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. The high signal to noise ratios of electron energy-loss spectroscopy core-loss...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 22, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: N. MIYAJIMA, C. HOLZAPFEL, Y. ASAHARA, L. DUBROVINSKY, D.J. FROST, D.C. RUBIE, M. DRECHSLER, K. NIWA, M. ICHIHARA, T. YAGI Source Type: journals

Gridded Aclar: preparation methods and use for correlative light and electron microscopy of cell monolayers, by TEM and FIB–SEMEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Aclar, a copolymer film with properties very similar to those of tissue culture plastic, is a versatile substrate to grow cells for light (including fluorescence) and electron microscopic applications in combination with both chemical fixation and cryoimmobilization. In this paper, we describe complete procedures to perform correlative light and electron microscopy using Aclar as substrate for the culture of cell monolayers to be finally embedded in plastic. First, we developed straightforward, efficient and flexible ways to mark the surface of the Aclar to create substrates to locate cells first at the light microscopy an...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 22, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: N. JIMÉNEZ, E.G. VAN DONSELAAR, D.A.M. DE WINTER, K. VOCKING, A.J. VERKLEIJ, J.A. POST Source Type: journals

Rapid quantification of the effects of blotting for correlation of light and cryo-light microscopy imagesEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Recent technical developments allowed the accurate correlation of fluorescently labelled organelles in living cells to cryo-electron micrographs. We aimed at expanding this approach to Plasmodium berghei sporozoites, the motile forms of a rodent malaria parasite, which can be imaged by cryo-electron tomography in toto without the need for sectioning. Sporozoites are crescent shaped eukaryotic cells that move on flat supports including EM grids in a circular, unidirectional manner. While sporozoites can be visualized with fluorescent light and cryo-light microscopy prior to tomography, few motile sporozoites remained on the...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 21, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: S. LEPPER, M. MERKEL, A. SARTORI, M. CYRKLAFF, F. FRISCHKNECHT Source Type: journals

Two-photon microscopy of deep intravital tissues and its merits in clinical researchEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Multiphoton excitation laser scanning microscopy, relying on the simultaneous absorption of two or more photons by a molecule, is one of the most exciting recent developments in biomedical imaging. Thanks to its superior imaging capability of deeper tissue penetration and efficient light detection, this system becomes more and more an inspiring tool for intravital bulk tissue imaging. Two-photon excitation microscopy including 2-photon fluorescence and second harmonic generated signal microscopy is the most common multiphoton microscopic application. In the present review we take diverse ocular tissues as intravital sample...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 21, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: B.-G. WANG, K. KÖNIG, K.-J. HALBHUBER Source Type: journals

Tensorial Minkowski functionals and anisotropy measures for planar patternsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Quantitative measures for anisotropic characteristics of spatial structure are needed when relating the morphology of microstructured heterogeneous materials to tensorial physical properties such as elasticity, permeability and conductance. Tensor-valued Minkowski functionals, defined in the framework of integral geometry, provide a concise set of descriptors of anisotropic morphology. In this article, we describe the robust computation of these measures for microscopy images and polygonal shapes. We demonstrate their relevance for shape description, their versatility and their robustness by applying them to experimental d...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 21, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: G.E. SCHRÖDER-TURK, S. KAPFER, B. BREIDENBACH, C. BEISBART, K. MECKE Source Type: journals

Improvement of the pore trapping method to immobilize vital coccoid bacteria for high-resolution AFM: a study of Staphylococcus aureusEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Preparation of vital bacteria for atomic force microscope study under aqueous fluid, such as physiological buffer or bacterial growth medium, presents challenges as cells will often desorb from the supporting surface or be dislodged by the atomic force microscope tip during imaging. An established method of immobilizing coccoid bacteria is to trap cells in polycarbonate track etched filter pores. We have significantly improved this method by modifying the pore diameter of commercially available filters to correspond to the diameter of the target strain, enabling high-resolution imaging of stationary organisms under buffer ...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 21, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: R.D. TURNER, N.H. THOMSON, J. KIRKHAM, D. DEVINE Source Type: journals

Micro-computed X-ray tomography: a new non-destructive method of assessing sectional, fly-through and 3D imaging of a soft-bodied marine wormEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
The detailed examination of the internal and functional anatomy of soft-bodied marine worms has, until now, only been possible using the time consuming and destructive techniques of dissection, histology and electron microscopy. This is the first description of soft body morphology in polychaetes (Nephtys hombergii) derived by means of a bench-top X-ray micro-CT scanner. The data are augmented, for comparison, by dissections, microscopy and scanning electron microscopy of the same species to show how this non-destructive technique can rapidly and reliably produce high-quality morphological data. It can also be applied to r...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 21, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: J. DINLEY, L. HAWKINS, G. PATERSON, A.D. BALL, I. SINCLAIR, P. SINNETT-JONES, S. LANHAM Source Type: journals

Quality control protocol for in vitro micro-computed tomographyEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
The aim of this work was to present and discuss a quality control protocol for in vitro micro-computed tomography (microCT), based on the adaptation of the quality control protocols for medical computed tomography. The importance of establishing a quality control protocol is related to the opportunity to identify problems on time comparing the microCT images acquired in different time points, and in this way to verify the performance of the device. The proposed quality control protocol was applied for a long-time monitoring period to verify the stability of the micro-tomographic system over time. The protocol proposed in t...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 21, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: R. STOICO, S. TASSANI, E. PERILLI, F. BARUFFALDI, M. VICECONTI Source Type: journals

Measurement of potential distribution function on object surface by using an electron microscope in the mirror operation modeEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
The quantitative theory of image contrast in an electron microscope in the mirror operation mode is given in this paper. This theory permits us to calculate the potential distribution on the object surface from the current density distribution on the microscope screen. The potential distribution results in image formation on the screen. Local electric fields existing on the object surface lead to a perturbation of electron trajectories above the object and to a redistribution of the current density on the screen, causing image contrast. Using the quantitative correlation between these fields and the function of current den...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 21, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: S.A. NEPIJKO, G. SCHÖNHENSE Source Type: journals

Automatic twin statistics from electron backscattered diffraction dataEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
A new computer code has been developed to automatically extract quantitative twin statistics from electron backscatter diffraction data. The new code is an improvement upon previous codes in that it handles materials of any crystal symmetry, type I, Type II and compound twins, and general stress states. Moreover, accuracy of the results has been greatly improved. In addition, twin statistics including number, area fraction, twin thickness and twinning dependencies on orientation, grain size and neighbourhood effects can be routinely analysed. The new code has been applied to scan data from deformed magnesium, zirconium and...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 21, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: P.E. MARSHALL, G. PROUST, J.T. ROGERS, R.J. MCCABE Source Type: journals

Near-field microscopy and fluorescence spectroscopy: application to chromosomes labelled with different fluorophoresEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
We have coupled a spectrophotometer with a scanning near-field optical microscope to obtain, with a single scan, simultaneously scanning near-field optical microscope fluorescence images at different wavelengths as well as topography and transmission images. Extraction of the fluorescence spectra enabled us to decompose the different wavelengths of the fluorescence signals which normally overlap. We thus obtained images of the different fluorescence emissions of acridine orange bound to single or double stranded nucleic acids in human metaphase chromosomes before and after DNAse I or RNAse A treatment. The analysis of thes...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 19, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: L. MAHIEU-WILLIAME, P. FALGAYRETTES, L. NATIVEL, P. GALL-BORRUT, L. COSTA, T. SALEHZADA, C. BISBAL Source Type: journals

Automatic identification of Caenorhabditis elegans in population images by shape energy featuresEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Experiments on model organisms are used to extend the understanding of complex biological processes. In Caenorhabditis elegans studies, populations of specimens are sampled to measure certain morphological properties and a population is characterized based on statistics extracted from such samples. Automatic detection of C. elegans in such culture images is a difficult problem. The images are affected by clutter, overlap and image degradations. In this paper, we exploit shape and appearance differences between C. elegans and non-C. elegans segmentations. Shape information is captured by optimizing a parametric open contour...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 16, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: D. OCHOA, S. GAUTAMA, W. PHILIPS Source Type: journals

Image correlation microscopy for uniform illuminationEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
In this report, we establish the relationships between the spatial autocorrelation function feature size, temporal autocorrelation function characteristic time and the diffusion coefficient for uniform illumination image correlation microscopy using analytical, Monte Carlo and experimental validation with particle tracking algorithms. Additionally, we demonstrate uniform illumination image correlation microscopy analysis of adhesion molecule domain aggregation and diffusion on the surface of human neutrophils. (Source: Journal of Microscopy)
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 15, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: T.R. GABORSKI, M.N. SEALANDER, M. EHRENBERG, R.E. WAUGH, J.L. MCGRATH Source Type: journals

A comparison study of detecting gold nanorods in living cells with confocal reflectance microscopy and two-photon fluorescence microscopyEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Two-photon fluorescence microscopy and confocal reflectance microscopy were compared to detect intracellular gold nanorods in rat basophilic leukaemia cells. The two-photon photoluminescence images of gold nanorods were acquired by an 800 nm fs laser with the power of milliwatts. The advantages of the obtained two-photon photoluminescence images are high spatial resolution and reduced background. However, a remarkable photothermal effect on cells was seen after 30 times continuous scanning of the femto-second laser, potentially affecting the subcellular localization pattern of the nanorods. In the case of confocal reflecta...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 15, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: Y. ZHOU, X. WU, T. WANG, T. MING, P.N. WANG, L.W. ZHOU, J.Y. CHEN Source Type: journals

Lagrange time delay estimation for scanning electron microscope image magnificationEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Interpolation techniques that are used for image magnification to obtain more useful details of the surface such as morphology and mechanical contrast usually rely on the signal information distributed around edges and areas of sharp changes and these signal information can also be used to predict missing details from the sample image. However, many of these interpolation methods tend to smooth or blur out image details around the edges. In the present study, a Lagrange time delay estimation interpolator method is proposed and this method only requires a small filter order and has no noticeable estimation bias. Comparing r...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 15, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: K.-S. SIM, L.W. THONG, H.Y. TING, C.P. TSO Source Type: journals

The amplification of polymerized diaminobenzidine with physical developers: sensitizing effects of transition metal salts and sulphideEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Amplification of metal-complexed polymerized diaminobenzidine by two light-insensitive physical developers was systematically examined in a dot blot model system following either polymerizing diaminobenzidine in the presence of transition metal salts or applying the metal salts post-diaminobenzidine polymerization. The effect of sodium sulphide treatment on subsequent amplification was also investigated. Those metal[ndash]diaminobenzidine complexes that facilitated the most powerful amplification were subsequently tested in an immunohistochemical setting. The most dramatic amplification of polymerized diaminobenzidine was ...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 15, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: C.J. VON RUHLAND, B. JASANI Source Type: journals

Image-based 3D reconstruction using helical nanobelts for localized rotationsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
A variety of different methods exist for gathering three-dimensional information for micro- and nanoscale objects. Tilting of samples in a scanning electron microscope provides a non-destructive way of generating these data. Traditionally, the reconstruction of this image data is performed by stereo photogrammetric methods that compare features from two or three frames. We propose the application of techniques from the structure-from-motion community as being efficient, high-precision alternatives to stereo methods, which allows for automated utilization of a large number of sampled images. We propose the use of nanobelts ...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 13, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: B.E. KRATOCHVIL, L.X. DONG, L. ZHANG, B.J. NELSON Source Type: journals

Dual channel heterodyne microscopeEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Heterodyne measurement of the amplitude and phase of a cross-polarized two-frequency laser beam reflected from a patterned surface enables simultaneous imaging in both the amplitude and phase-contrast modes. Such imaging duality provides additional information for inspection. Besides, spatial resolution in the phase-contrast mode of operation is not limited by the width of the focused beam and, therefore, may be better than that of traditional imaging techniques. This phenomenon, commonly referred to as super-resolution, was experimentally observed. (Source: Journal of Microscopy)
Source: Journal of Microscopy - October 6, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: V. PROTOPOPOV Source Type: journals

A method of PSF generation for 3D brightfield deconvolutionEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
This paper addresses the problem of 3D deconvolution of through focus widefield microscope datasets (Z-stacks). One of the most difficult stages in brightfield deconvolution is finding the point spread function. A theoretically calculated point spread function (called a 'synthetic PSF' in this paper) requires foreknowledge of many system parameters and still gives only approximate results. A point spread function measured from a sub-resolution bead suffers from low signal-to-noise ratio, compounded in the brightfield setting (by contrast to fluorescence) by absorptive, refractive and dispersal effects. This paper describes...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - September 23, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: P.J. TADROUS Source Type: journals

Electron tomography of III-V quantum dots using dark field 002 imaging conditionsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
We present an evaluation of electron tomography of buried InAs quantum dots using dark field 002 imaging conditions. The compositional sensitivity of this imaging condition gives strong contrast among III-V materials of differing compositions and, in principle, should allow an accurate 3D model of the buried structures to be produced. The large extinction distance allows specimens several hundred nanometres in thickness to be examined and reduces the effect of strain contrast in the images, with the advantage that it can be performed using conventional transmission electron microscopy techniques. A two-beam condition must ...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - September 16, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: R. BEANLAND, A.M. SÁNCHEZ, J.C. HERNANDEZ-GARRIDO, D. WOLF, P.A. MIDGLEY Source Type: journals

High-resolution wide-field microscopy with adaptive optics for spherical aberration correction and motionless focusingEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Live imaging in cell biology requires three-dimensional data acquisition with the best resolution and signal-to-noise ratio possible. Depth aberrations are a major source of image degradation in three-dimensional microscopy, causing a significant loss of resolution and intensity deep into the sample. These aberrations occur because of the mismatch between the sample refractive index and the immersion medium index. We have built a wide-field fluorescence microscope that incorporates a large-throw deformable mirror to simultaneously focus and correct for depth aberration in three-dimensional imaging. Imaging fluorescent bead...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - September 15, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: P. KNER, J.W. SEDAT, D.A. AGARD, Z. KAM Source Type: journals

Comparison of different methods for thin section EM analysis of Mycobacterium smegmatisEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
In conclusion although cryo electron microscopy of vitreous sections must be considered the 'gold standard' among sectioning methods for electron microscopy, because it avoids solvents and stains, the use of optimally prepared freeze substitution also offers some advantages for ultrastructural analysis of bacteria. (Source: Journal of Microscopy)
Source: Journal of Microscopy - September 15, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: C.K.E. BLECK, A. MERZ, M.G. GUTIERREZ, P. WALTHER, J. DUBOCHET, B. ZUBER, G. GRIFFITHS Source Type: journals

Full spectrum filterless fluorescence microscopyEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
We report on a microscope that acquired fluorescence images using illumination across the spectral range 450[ndash]680 nm; the full emission spectrum was detected simultaneously across the same range. The microscope was also combined with structured illumination optical sectioning to give three-dimensionally resolved images with improved background rejection. Full spectrum fluorescence images of biological specimens are demonstrated. As this system is more versatile than the standard fluorescence microscope, it could be of benefit in many fluorescence imaging applications. (Source: Journal of Microscopy)
Source: Journal of Microscopy - September 14, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: M.J. BOOTH, A. JESACHER, R. JU[Scaron]KAITIS, T. WILSON Source Type: journals

Model based precision structural measurements on barely resolved objectsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
A model based method for the accurate quantification of the 3D structure of fluorescently labelled cellular objects similar in size to the optical resolution limit is presented. This method is applied to both simulated confocal images of chromatin structures and to real confocal data obtained on a Fluorescence in situ Hybridization (FISH) labelled gene domain. The model assumes that the object is composed of a small number of discrete points which are convolved with the microscope point spread function to give the image. Fitting this model to image data results in a method to assess object structure which is accurate, show...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - September 1, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: D. BADDELEY, Y. WEILAND, C. BATRAM, U. BIRK, C. CREMER Source Type: journals

Information content analysis in automated microscopy imaging using an adaptive autofocus algorithm for multimodal functionsEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
We present a new algorithm to analyse information content in images acquired using automated fluorescence microscopy. The algorithm belongs to the group of autofocusing methods, but differs from its predecessors in that it can handle thick specimens and operate also in confocal mode. It measures the information content in images using a 'content function', which is essentially the same concept as a focus function. Unlike previously presented algorithms, this algorithm tries to find all significant axial positions in cases where the content function applied to real data is not unimodal, which is often the case. This require...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - August 31, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: S.L. BRÁZDILOVÁ, M. KOZUBEK Source Type: journals

Crystallographic preferred orientation (CPO) of gypsum measured by electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD)Email this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
An investigation by electron backscatter diffraction on gypsum shows that this technique can be used to study the microstructures and crystallographic preferred orientation of gypsum. Presented here are the methods, verification tests and data obtained from a naturally deformed sample of gypsum-rich rock. The electron backscatter diffraction data show the sample has a strong crystallographic preferred orientation. (Source: Journal of Microscopy)
Source: Journal of Microscopy - August 31, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: R.C. HILDYARD, D.J. PRIOR, E. MARIANI, D.R. FAULKNER Source Type: journals

Observation of three-dimensional internal structure of steel materials by means of serial sectioning with ultrasonic elliptical vibration cuttingEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
A three-dimensional (3D) internal structure observation system based on serial sectioning was developed from an ultrasonic elliptical vibration cutting device and an optical microscope combined with a high-precision positioning device. For bearing steel samples, the cutting device created mirrored surfaces suitable for optical metallography, even for long-cutting distances during serial sectioning of these ferrous materials. Serial sectioning progressed automatically by means of numerical control. The system was used to observe inclusions in steel materials on a scale of several tens of micrometers. Three specimens contain...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - August 27, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: K. FUJISAKI, H. YOKOTA, H. NAKATSUCHI, Y. YAMAGATA, T. NISHIKAWA, T. UDAGAWA, A. MAKINOUCHI Source Type: journals

Atom probe tomography analysis of poly(3-alkylthiophene)sEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Pulsed-laser atom-probe tomography is used to compare the field-evaporation mass spectrum and spatial distribution of molecular fragments from various poly(3-alkylthiophene) films deposited on sharpened aluminium specimen carriers using two different deposition methods. Films deposited via a modified solution-cast methodology yield small fragments with a uniform structural morphology whereas films deposited via an electrospray ionization methodology yield a wide range of fragments with a very non-uniform structural morphology. The main field-evaporated chemical species identified for both deposition types were, in order of...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - August 27, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: T.J. PROSA, S. KOSTRNA KEENEY, T.F. KELLY Source Type: journals

Computation of a tetrahedral mesh for striated muscle deformation simulationEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
Competing concepts exist regarding surgery for instance of the cleft lip and palate to date. Morphology-based simulations at histological scale may one day be used to help the surgeon predict the possible outcome of a variety of approaches. It however can be a challenge to generate volume meshes that are applicable to the mathematical modelling of three-dimensional spatial modifications. Computation of surface meshes may be considered less delicate. The aim of this study is to design and evaluate a novel algorithm that supports finite element methods. Images of histological serial sections of a striated muscle were segment...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - August 26, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: A.R. ZAHER, F. WEICHERT, N. BRAMSIEPE, C.A. LANDES, S. AWAD, A. SHAMAA, M. WAGNER Source Type: journals

Real-time computation of subdiffraction-resolution fluorescence imagesEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
We present and benchmark different algorithms for noise reduction and demonstrate the use of non-maximum suppression to quickly find likely fluorophore positions in high depth and very noisy images. The algorithm is evaluated and compared in terms of speed, accuracy and robustness by means of simulated data. On real biological samples, we find that real-time data processing is possible and that super-resolution imaging with organic fluorophores of cellular structures with [sim]20 nm optical resolution can be completed in less than 10 s. (Source: Journal of Microscopy)
Source: Journal of Microscopy - August 25, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: S. WOLTER, M. SCHÜTTPELZ, M. TSCHEREPANOW, S. VAN DE LINDE, M. HEILEMANN, M. SAUER Source Type: journals

Time-lapse FRET microscopy using fluorescence anisotropyEmail this article to a colleague. Save this article to My Clippings. Discuss or comment on this article.
We present recent data on dynamic imaging of Rac1 activity in live T-cells. Förster resonance energy transfer between enhanced green and monomeric red fluorescent protein pairs which form part of a biosensor molecule provides a metric of this activity. Microscopy is performed using a multi-functional high-content screening instrument using fluorescence anisotropy to provide a means of monitoring protein[ndash]protein activity with high temporal resolution. Specifically, the response of T-cells upon interaction of a cell surface receptor with an antibody coated multi-well chamber was measured. We observed dynamic changes i...
Source: Journal of Microscopy - August 25, 2009 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: D.R. MATTHEWS, L.M. CARLIN, E. OFO, P.R. BARBER, B. VOJNOVIC, M. IRVING, T. NG, S.M. AMEER-BEG Source Type: journals