Intravital imaging allows the visualization of fluorescently labeled structures like cells, blood flow, and pathogens in a living organism. Nowadays, numerous methods for imaging in several organs are available. In this chapter, we present a method for intravital 2-photon microscopy of the murine tibial bone marrow. It enables the observation of hematopoietic cells including cells of the innate and adaptive immune system under physiological conditions. Motility analyses within this complex environment led to insights into their migratory potential as well as their interactions with other cells or blood vessels.
Keywords: Bone marrow; Cell migration; Intravital 2-photon microscopy; Murine tibia.