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All Eyes

New application of light-sheet fluorescent microscopy allows eye study in super detail

19 April 2020

All Eyes

Take an orange, slice its surface, pull it open and squash it flat. Now, could you easily figure out exactly how its insides fit together? Imagine the same problem with the far more complex mammalian eye. When studying eye diseases using traditional microscopy, specimen eyes must be peeled open and flattened, distorting the tissue. Researchers now demonstrate the power of light-sheet fluorescent microscopy (LSFM) for 3D live-imaging whole, spherical mouse eyes. In a mouse model of eye disease, oxygen-induced retinopathy (OIR), LSFM revealed new features previously unappreciated using traditional microscopy. Abnormal blood vessels called tufts, which invade the retina, were found to be knotted. This was confirmed using micro-CT of fixed — and therefore non-living — OIR mouse retina (pictured, right), with lumps of knotted vessels observed pushing through compared to normal mouse retina (left). LSFM could, therefore, reveal new insights in the study of many different eye diseases.

Written by Lux Fatimathas

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BPoD stands for Biomedical Picture of the Day. Managed by the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences until Jul 2023, it is now run independently by a dedicated team of scientists and writers. The website aims to engage everyone, young and old, in the wonders of biology, and its influence on medicine. The ever-growing archive of more than 4000 research images documents over a decade of progress. Explore the collection and see what you discover. Images are kindly provided for inclusion on this website through the generosity of scientists across the globe.

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