Imaging of Bone Marrow Plasma Cells and of Their Niches

Methods Mol Biol. 2021:2308:163-176. doi: 10.1007/978-1-0716-1425-9_14.

Abstract

Decade-long survival of plasma cells in the bone marrow has long been a puzzling matter. To understand how plasma cells are maintained and supported by survival-niches to account for lifelong antibody production demands new intravital imaging techniques that are able to follow up a single cell and their interaction with other cell types in situ. We achieved to successfully establish longitudinal imaging of the bone marrow (LIMB) that is based on an implantable endoscopic device. In this chapter, basic approaches on how to investigate plasma cell-stroma interaction and surgical implantation procedures are introduced.

Keywords: Bone marrow; Intravital imaging, Fluorescent reporter mice; Plasma cells; Survival niches; Two-photon microscopy.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adoptive Transfer
  • Animals
  • Bone Marrow / metabolism
  • Bone Marrow / physiology*
  • Bone Marrow Cells / metabolism
  • Bone Marrow Cells / physiology*
  • Bone Marrow Transplantation
  • Cell Separation
  • Cellular Microenvironment*
  • Genes, Reporter
  • Image Processing, Computer-Assisted*
  • Intravital Microscopy*
  • Luminescent Proteins / genetics
  • Luminescent Proteins / metabolism
  • Mice, Transgenic
  • Microscopy, Fluorescence, Multiphoton*
  • Plasma Cells / metabolism
  • Plasma Cells / physiology*
  • Positive Regulatory Domain I-Binding Factor 1 / genetics
  • Positive Regulatory Domain I-Binding Factor 1 / metabolism

Substances

  • Luminescent Proteins
  • Prdm1 protein, mouse
  • Positive Regulatory Domain I-Binding Factor 1