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Updated: Jun 30, 2026

Simultaneous Multicolor Imaging of Biological Structures with Fluorescence Photoactivation Localization Microscopy
Published on: December 9, 2013
Super-resolution microscopy by nanoscale localization of photo-switchable fluorescent probes
Mark Bates1, Bo Huang, Xiaowei Zhuang
1School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Cambridge, MA 02138, United States, USA.
Abstract:
A new form of super-resolution fluorescence microscopy has emerged in recent years, based on the high accuracy localization of individual photo-switchable fluorescent labels. Image resolution as high as 20 nm in the lateral dimensions and 50 nm in the axial direction has been attained with this concept, representing an order of magnitude improvement over the diffraction limit. The demonstration of multicolor imaging with molecular specificity, three-dimensional (3D) imaging of cellular structures, and time-resolved imaging of living cells further illustrates the exciting potential of this method for biological imaging at the nanoscopic scale.
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