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Imaging immunometabolism in situ in live animals
Nicole Molnar1,2,3, Veronika Miskolci1,2,3
1Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, New Jersey Medical School, Rutgers Health, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ, USA.
Insights
Immunometabolism research is advancing by studying immune cells in their natural environments. New imaging techniques like Raman and autofluorescence lifetime microscopy are key to understanding cellular metabolism in tissues.
Area of Science:
- Immunology
- Cellular Metabolism
- Biomedical Imaging
Background:
- Immunometabolism research has primarily relied on in vitro and ex vivo studies.
- Understanding immune cell function requires investigating metabolism within its native biological context.
- Studying cells in their microenvironment is crucial for uncovering cell-intrinsic mechanisms and intercellular communication.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review current imaging-based technologies for analyzing immunometabolism.
- To explore emerging imaging methods with potential in immunometabolism research.
- To highlight the importance of spatial and temporal resolution in studying dynamic intracellular metabolism.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing imaging technologies for cellular metabolism analysis.
- Exploration of Raman imaging microscopy.
- Exploration of autofluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy.
Main Results:
- Current imaging technologies enable analysis of dynamic intracellular metabolism.
- Raman and autofluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy show significant potential for immunometabolism studies.
- These advanced techniques offer spatial and temporal resolution at the single-cell level.
Conclusions:
- Investigating immunometabolism in native microenvironments is essential.
- Emerging imaging techniques like Raman and autofluorescence lifetime microscopy are vital for future advancements.
- These methods will broaden applications in diagnostics and therapeutics for human diseases.
Abstract:
Immunometabolism is a rapidly developing field that holds great promise for diagnostic and therapeutic benefits to human diseases. The field has emerged based on seminal findings from in vitro and ex vivo studies that established the fundamental role of metabolism in immune cell effector functions. Currently, the field is acknowledging the necessity of investigating cellular metabolism within the natural context of biological processes. Examining cells in their native microenvironment is essential not only to reveal cell-intrinsic mechanisms but also to understand how cross-talk between neighboring cells regulates metabolism at the tissue level in a local niche. This necessity is driving innovation and advancement in multiple imaging-based technologies to enable analysis of dynamic intracellular metabolism at the single-cell level, with spatial and temporal resolution. In this review, we tally the currently available imaging-based technologies and explore the emerging methods of Raman and autofluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy, which hold significant potential and offer broad applications in the field of immunometabolism.
