Live-cell imaging capabilities of the InVi SPIM microscope announced by Luxendo

Luxendo, a Bruker company, today announced the extension of the InVi SPIM microscope to include full incubation capabilities, as well as flexible illumination and detection optics. Luxendo’s proprietary single-plane illumination microscopy (SPIM) technique significantly reduces sampling times over conventional laser scanning confocal microscopes, while reducing phototoxicity and damaging side effects on living specimens.

The new technology also enables the fastest scan speeds for volumetric imaging of small organisms, cell monolayers, and cleared tissue. InVi SPIM combines these capabilities with perfect environmental conditions and gentle sample handling to create an optimized platform for ‘pure life imaging’.

We have been using the InVi SPIM light-sheet microscope to image breast tumor organoids derived from primary mammary epithelial cells" said Dr. Martin Jechlinger, Group Leader for the Cell Biology and Biophysics Unit, EMBL Heidelberg, Germany, and EMBL Rome.

Ease of mounting the sample has allowed us to acquire fantastic images of tumor progression and regression on the InVi. Now, with its full incubation functionality and its improved illumination and detection concept, we can run long-term experiments on tumorigenesis that are not feasible on any other microscope system.”

“In live-cell imaging, the effect of photons to the specimen can have a big impact on the cells’ viability and unabridged development,” said Dr. Andreas Pfuhl, Managing Director of Luxendo. “With the inverted InVi SPIM platform combining precise environmental control with highly flexible optical settings, we can ensure that the observation method is not interfering with the cells’ physiological behavior.”

The InVi SPIM’s successful handling of extremely sensitive specimens, such as embryonic cells during their first divisions, has been proven in recent publications (Strnad et al., Nature Methods 2015; Reichmann et al., Science 2018). Other samples, such as tumor spheroids, organoids, and all kinds of culture cell lines, can now be imaged with more than 80 frames per second in full frame 2048 x 2048-pixel resolution up to 500 frames per second in 192 x 2048 resolution.

About InVi SPIM

The InVi SPIM microscope enables fast 3D imaging with extremely gentle sample handling for cell cultures and developing embryonic samples. Easy access to the sample chamber, maximized photo-efficiency, and short illumination times enable long-term imaging without harming live specimens. Simultaneous dual-channel detection allows the observation of multiple fluorophores without compromising acquisition speed. At the same time, the light-sheet length and thickness can be adapted to the two available magnification steps. While the specimen is kept in a specific sample carrier that serves as a “curved coverslip,” the environmental control is thoroughly monitored and adjusted for humidity, temperature, carbon dioxide and oxygen concentration. This stabilizes the experimental conditions in cellular imaging in such a way that observation times for up to 72 hours can be achieved.