Super-resolution microscopy: going live and going fast

Abstract

Super-resolution microscopy is increasingly becoming an important tool for biological research, providing valuable information at the nanometer-length scales inside cells and tissues. In the past decade numerous technological advancements have transformed super-resolution microscopes into powerful tools of discovery. While the first super-resolution images took several hours to acquire, recent progress has led to tremendous improvement in acquisition speed, enabling researchers to probe dynamic processes in living cells with unprecedented spatiotemporal resolution. This minireview focuses on the recent developments in live-cell super-resolution microscopy and its biological applications.

Keywords: PALM; SIM; STED; STORM; live-cell imaging; super-resolution microscopy.