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Updated: Aug 9, 2026
Non-invasive Imaging of Leukocyte Homing and Migration in vivo
Published on: December 6, 2010
Visualization of leukocyte transendothelial and interstitial migration using reflected light oblique
Thorsten R Mempel1, Christian Moser, Joerg Hutter
1Institute for Surgical Research, University of Munich, Munich, Germany.
Insights
A new microscopy technique enhances image contrast for observing leukocyte migration in tissues. This method allows for reliable quantification and characterization of leukocyte extravasation and movement within the body.
Area of Science:
- Immunology
- Cell Biology
- Microscopy
Background:
- Intravital microscopy advances understanding of leukocyte extravasation.
- Conventional microscopy struggles with poor image contrast of leukocytes in turbid tissues.
- Detailed observation of leukocyte transendothelial and interstitial migration in vivo is challenging.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a novel microscopy method for enhanced visualization of leukocyte migration.
- To overcome limitations of conventional brightfield microscopy in observing cells within tissues.
- To enable reliable quantification and morphological characterization of leukocyte migration.
Main Methods:
- Introduced reflected light oblique transillumination microscopy.
- Utilized optical interference phenomena from oblique transillumination.
- Applied the technique to mouse cremaster muscle for in vivo studies.
Main Results:
- Achieved enhanced image contrast by visualizing refractive index gradients.
- Enabled reliable quantification of extravasated leukocytes.
- Facilitated characterization of leukocyte transendothelial and interstitial migration morphology.
Conclusions:
- Reflected light oblique transillumination microscopy significantly improves visualization of leukocyte migration in vivo.
- The technique overcomes previous contrast limitations in turbid biological media.
- Provides a powerful tool for studying leukocyte dynamics and inflammatory responses.
Abstract:
Dynamic visualization of the intravascular events leading to the extravasation of leukocytes into tissues by intravital microscopy has significantly expanded our understanding of the underlying molecular processes. In contrast, the detailed observation of leukocyte transendothelial and interstitial migration in vivo has been hampered by the poor image contrast of cells within turbid media that is obtainable by conventional brightfield microscopy. Here we present a microscopic method, termed reflected light oblique transillumination microscopy, that makes use of the optical interference phenomena generated by oblique transillumination to visualize subtle gradients of refractive indices within tissues for enhanced image contrast. Using the mouse cremaster muscle, we demonstrate that this technique makes possible the reliable quantification of extravasated leukocytes as well as the characterization of morphological phenomena of leukocyte transendothelial and interstitial migration.
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