Understanding immune signaling using advanced imaging techniques

Mario Brameshuber; Enrico Klotzsch; Aleks Ponjavic; Erdinc Sezgin

doi:10.1042/BST20210479

Understanding immune signaling using advanced imaging techniques

Biochem Soc Trans. 2022 Apr 29;50(2):853-866. doi: 10.1042/BST20210479.

Authors

Mario Brameshuber¹, Enrico Klotzsch², Aleks Ponjavic^{3

4}, Erdinc Sezgin⁵

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Applied Physics - Biophysics, TU Wien, 1040 Vienna, Austria.
² Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Institut für Biophysik, Experimentelle Biophysik Mechanobiologie, Sitz Invalidenstrasse 42, 10115 Berlin, Germany.
³ School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leeds, Woodhouse Lane, Leeds LS2 9JT, U.K.
⁴ School of Food Science and Nutrition, University of Leeds, Woodhouse Lane, Leeds LS2 9JT, U.K.
⁵ Science for Life Laboratory, Department of Women's and Children's Health, Karolinska Institutet, 17165 Solna, Sweden.

Abstract

Advanced imaging is key for visualizing the spatiotemporal regulation of immune signaling which is a complex process involving multiple players tightly regulated in space and time. Imaging techniques vary in their spatial resolution, spanning from nanometers to micrometers, and in their temporal resolution, ranging from microseconds to hours. In this review, we summarize state-of-the-art imaging methodologies and provide recent examples on how they helped to unravel the mysteries of immune signaling. Finally, we discuss the limitations of current technologies and share our insights on how to overcome these limitations to visualize immune signaling with unprecedented fidelity.

Keywords: biophysics; confocal microscopy; lattice light sheet microscopy; single molecule localization microscopy; super-resolution imaging; widefield microscopy.

Publication types

Review
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Microscopy, Fluorescence / methods
Signal Transduction*