Demonstrating soft X-ray tomography in the lab for correlative cryogenic biological imaging using X-rays and light...

Area of Science:

• Biophysics
• Cell Biology
• Microscopy

Background:

• Soft X-ray tomography (SXT) provides 3D ultrastructural detail of hydrated biological samples.
• Traditionally, SXT required large synchrotron facilities, limiting accessibility.
• Advances in laser-driven plasma sources enable compact SXT systems.

Purpose of the Study:

• To validate a new laboratory-based compact SXT system for biological imaging.
• To demonstrate the system's capability across diverse cell types and sample compositions.
• To assess the potential for broader accessibility of cryogenic X-ray imaging.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a compact soft X-ray microscope with a laser-driven plasma source.
• Achieved 54 nm resolution with tomogram acquisition times of 30 minutes to 2 hours.
• Applied the system to image protists, yeast, and mammalian cells with nanoparticles.

Main Results:

• Successfully imaged cellular architecture, organelle interactions, and nanoparticle trafficking.
• Demonstrated robust high-resolution imaging across various biological contexts.
• Validated the system's performance for studying native, hydrated biological specimens.

Conclusions:

• The compact SXT system provides reliable, high-resolution imaging comparable to synchrotron-based methods.
• This development significantly enhances the accessibility of advanced 3D cellular imaging in laboratory settings.
• Future work will focus on increasing throughput and integrating with other imaging modalities for complex samples like tissues.