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Updated: Jul 8, 2026
Dissection and 2-Photon Imaging of Peripheral Lymph Nodes in Mice
Published on: August 23, 2007
Choreography of cell motility and interaction dynamics imaged by two-photon microscopy in lymphoid organs
Michael D Cahalan1, Ian Parker
1Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of California, Irvine, California 92697, USA. mcahalan@uci.edu
Insights
Two-photon microscopy reveals the dynamic cell movements and interactions crucial for adaptive immunity. This advanced imaging technique visualizes immune cell choreography in vivo, offering new insights into immune responses.
Area of Science:
- Immunology
- Cell Biology
- Microscopy
Background:
- The immune system relies on extensive cell migration and communication for effective response.
- Key immune events like antigen recognition and cell activation were not directly observable in vivo until recently.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review cellular dynamics and molecular factors governing immune responses.
- To highlight the application of two-photon microscopy in visualizing immune cell behavior in vivo.
Main Methods:
- Utilized two-photon microscopy, a technique introduced in 2002 for deep tissue imaging.
- Observed living cells within native tissue environments to study immune cell choreography.
Main Results:
- Revealed the dynamic motility of lymphocytes within lymph nodes.
- Visualized cellular interactions critical for antigen capture, T and B cell activation, effector functions, and antibody production.
Conclusions:
- Two-photon microscopy provides unprecedented in vivo visualization of the adaptive immune response.
- Understanding cellular dynamics and molecular factors is key to deciphering immune response orchestration.
Abstract:
The immune system is the most diffuse cellular system in the body. Accordingly, long-range migration of cells and short-range communication by local chemical signaling and by cell-cell contacts are vital to the control of an immune response. Cellular homing and migration within lymphoid organs, antigen recognition, and cell signaling and activation are clearly vital during an immune response, but these events had not been directly observed in vivo until recently. Introduced to the field of immunology in 2002, two-photon microscopy is the method of choice for visualizing living cells deep within native tissue environments, and it is now revealing an elegant cellular choreography that underlies the adaptive immune response to antigen challenge. We review cellular dynamics and molecular factors that contribute to basal motility of lymphocytes in the lymph node and cellular interactions leading to antigen capture and recognition, T cell activation, B cell activation, cytolytic effector function, and antibody production.
