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PeakForce Tapping resolves individual microvilli on living cells.

Hermann Schillers1, Izhar Medalsy2, Shuiqing Hu2

  • 1Institute of Physiology II, University of Münster, Robert-Koch-Str. 27b, Münster, 48149, Germany.

Journal of Molecular Recognition : JMR
|September 29, 2015
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

This study visualizes microvilli on living kidney cells using Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) with PeakForce Tapping. This technique allows detailed imaging of these delicate structures under physiological conditions.

Keywords:
AFMMDCKPeakforce Tappinglive cell AFM probelow-force imaging

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Area of Science:

  • Cell Biology
  • Biophysics
  • Nanotechnology

Background:

  • Microvilli are crucial for epithelial cell function, increasing surface area for transport and acting as mechanosensors.
  • Degradation of microvilli leads to diseases like malabsorption and diarrhea.
  • Traditional Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) struggles to image flexible structures like microvilli due to probe interactions.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To demonstrate the first-time visualization of microvilli on living kidney cells using AFM.
  • To showcase the effectiveness of PeakForce Tapping in imaging soft, flexible cellular structures.
  • To optimize AFM imaging for live-cell surface topography under physiological conditions.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) with the PeakForce Tapping imaging mode.
  • Employed a newly developed PeakForce QNM-Live Cell probe with a short cantilever and tip to minimize hydrodynamic effects.
  • Applied force control in the low pico-Newton range to reduce tip-sample interactions.

Main Results:

  • Successfully visualized microvilli on living kidney cells using AFM and PeakForce Tapping.
  • Observed force-dependent structures, indicating imaging of either whole microvilli or just their tips.
  • Demonstrated that PeakForce Tapping enables visualization of very soft and flexible structures on live cells.

Conclusions:

  • PeakForce Tapping is a powerful AFM mode for imaging delicate cellular structures like microvilli on live cells.
  • The optimized probe and imaging mode allow for high-resolution visualization under physiological conditions.
  • This technique advances the study of cell surface morphology and its relation to cellular function.