A tube-source X-ray microtomography approach for quantitative 3D microscopy of optically challenging cell-cultured samples.
Commun Biol 2020;
3:548. [PMID:
33009501 PMCID:
PMC7532209 DOI:
10.1038/s42003-020-01273-w]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2019] [Accepted: 09/03/2020] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Development and study of cell-cultured constructs, such as tissue-engineering scaffolds or organ-on-a-chip platforms require a comprehensive, representative view on the cells inside the used materials. However, common characteristics of biomedical materials, for example, in porous, fibrous, rough-surfaced, and composite materials, can severely disturb low-energy imaging. In order to image and quantify cell structures in optically challenging samples, we combined labeling, 3D X-ray imaging, and in silico processing into a methodological pipeline. Cell-structure images were acquired by a tube-source X-ray microtomography device and compared to optical references for assessing the visual and quantitative accuracy. The spatial coverage of the X-ray imaging was demonstrated by investigating stem-cell nuclei inside clinically relevant-sized tissue-engineering scaffolds (5x13 mm) that were difficult to examine with the optical methods. Our results highlight the potential of the readily available X-ray microtomography devices that can be used to thoroughly study relative large cell-cultured samples with microscopic 3D accuracy.
Tamminen et al. show that a commercial, tube-source µCT device combined with computational image analysis can be used to obtain quantitative 3D data for cellular structures in optically-challenging samples hard to image using other methods.
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