Stochastic optical reconstruction microscopy (STORM): a method for superresolution fluorescence imaging

The relatively low spatial resolution of the optical microscope presents significant limitations for the observation of biological ultrastructure. Subcellular structures and molecular complexes essential for biological function exist on length scales from nanometers to micrometers. When observed with light, however, structural features smaller than ∼0.2 µm are blurred and are difficult or impossible to resolve. In this article, we describe stochastic optical reconstruction microscopy (STORM), a method for superresolution imaging based on the high accuracy localization of individual fluorophores. It uses optically switchable fluorophores: molecules that can be switched between a nonfluorescent and a fluorescent state by exposure to light. The article discusses photoswitchable fluorescent molecules, STORM microscope design and the imaging procedure, data analysis, imaging of cultured cells, multicolor STORM, and three-dimensional (3D) STORM. This approach is generally applicable to biological imaging and requires relatively simple experimental apparatus; its spatial resolution is theoretically unlimited, and a resolution improvement of an order of magnitude over conventional optical microscopy has been experimentally demonstrated.