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Updated: Jun 23, 2026
Light-sheet Microscopy for Three-dimensional Visualization of Human Immune Cells
Published on: June 13, 2018
Shine a light: imaging the immune system
Milka Sarris1, Alexander G Betz
1Medical Research Council, Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge, UK. betz@mrc-lmb.cam.ac.uk
Insights
Intra vital microscopy and whole-body imaging offer new ways to study the immune system. Combining these advanced imaging techniques with traditional methods will provide a comprehensive understanding of immune processes.
Area of Science:
- Immunology
- Microscopy
- In vivo imaging
Background:
- Intra vital microscopy and whole-body imaging are revolutionizing immune system research.
- These techniques provide direct biological relevance and visually compelling data.
- Ex vivo reductionist approaches have historically yielded fundamental insights.
Purpose of the Study:
- To provide an overview of available imaging techniques for studying the immune system.
- To discuss the strengths and limitations of various imaging modalities.
- To highlight how these tools have advanced current understanding and to propose future directions.
Main Methods:
- Review of intra vital microscopy techniques.
- Analysis of whole-body imaging approaches.
- Discussion of ex vivo methods, including microfluidics.
Main Results:
- Imaging techniques offer direct visualization of immune processes.
- Both in vivo and ex vivo methods have contributed significantly to the field.
- Microfluidics presents new opportunities for ex vivo immune studies.
Conclusions:
- Integrating findings from diverse imaging disciplines is crucial.
- The future requires applying the most suitable technologies for a unified view of the immune system.
- A comprehensive "big picture" of immune system function is the ultimate goal.
Abstract:
Intra vital microscopy and whole-body imaging promise to revolutionize how we study the immune system. They compel by the intrinsic beauty of the images obtained and the undeniable direct biological relevance of the observations. However, it is important to remember that in many cases, fundamental insights into the underlying biological processes have already been obtained using ex vivo reductionist approaches. Indeed, it is likely that with the advent of microfluidics, new and exciting avenues will open up for ex vivo experimentation. Here, we give a brief but comprehensive overview of the various imaging techniques available, their relative strengths and shortcomings and how these tools have been used to get us to where we are today. The challenge for the future will be to apply the most suitable technology and to integrate the findings across various imaging disciplines to build a unified, comprehensive "big picture" of the immune system.
