scholarly journals Three-dimensional imaging and reconstruction of the whole ovary and testis: a new frontier for the reproductive scientist

2021 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Giulia Fiorentino ◽  
Annapaola Parrilli ◽  
Silvia Garagna ◽  
Maurizio Zuccotti

Abstract The 3D functional reconstruction of a whole organ or organism down to the single cell level and to the subcellular components and molecules is a major future scientific challenge. The recent convergence of advanced imaging techniques with an impressively increased computing power allowed early attempts to translate and combine 2D images and functional data to obtain in-silico organ 3D models. This review first describes the experimental pipeline required for organ 3D reconstruction: from the collection of 2D serial images obtained with light, confocal, light-sheet microscopy or tomography, followed by their registration, segmentation and subsequent 3D rendering. Then, we summarise the results of investigations performed so far by applying these 3D image analyses to the study of the female and male mammalian gonads. These studies highlight the importance of working towards a 3D in-silico model of the ovary and testis as a tool to gain insights into their biology during the phases of differentiation or adulthood, in normal or pathological conditions. Furthermore, the use of 3D imaging approaches opens to key technical improvements, ranging from image acquisition to optimisation and development of new processing tools, and unfolds novel possibilities for multidisciplinary research.

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jake W. Willows ◽  
Magdalena Blaszkiewicz ◽  
Amy Lamore ◽  
Samuel Borer ◽  
Amanda L. Dubois ◽  
...  

AbstractAdipose tissue requires neural innervation in order to regulate important metabolic functions. Though seminal work on adipose denervation has underscored the importance of adipose-nerve interactions in both white (energy storing) and brown (energy expending) adipose tissues, much remains a mystery. This is due, in part, to the inability to effectively visualize the various nerve subtypes residing within these tissues and to gain a comprehensive quantitation of neurite density in an entire depot. With the recent surge of advanced imaging techniques such as light sheet microscopy and optical clearing procedures, adipose tissue imaging has been reinvigorated with a focus on three-dimensional analysis of tissue innervation. However, clearing techniques are time consuming, often require solvents caustic to objective lenses, alter tissue morphology, and greatly reduce fluorophore lifespan. Not only are current methods of imaging wholemount adipose tissues inconvenient, but often attempts to quantify neurite density across physiological or pathophysiological conditions have been limited to representative section sampling. We have developed a new method of adipose tissue neurite imaging and quantitation that is faster than current clearing-based methods, does not require caustic chemicals, and leaves the tissue fully intact. Maintenance of a fully intact depot allowed for tiling z-stacks and producing maximum intensity projections of the entire adipose depot, which were then used to quantify neurite density across the tissue. With this processing method we were able to characterize the nerves, nerve-subtypes, and neurovascular interactions within the inguinal subcutaneous white adipose tissue in mice using up to five fluorescent channels at high resolution. We also utilized second harmonic generation, which provides label-free imaging, to investigate collagen fiber abundance in adipose of obese mice.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zer Vue ◽  
Gabriel Gonzalez ◽  
C. Allison Stewart ◽  
Shyamin Mehra ◽  
Richard R. Behringer

AbstractEndometrial or uterine glands secrete substances essential for uterine receptivity to the embryo, implantation, conceptus survival, development, and growth. Adenogenesis is the process of gland formation within the stroma of the uterus that occurs after birth. In the mouse, uterine gland formation initiates at postnatal day (P) 5. Subsequently, the developing uterine glands invade into the adjacent stroma. Mouse uterine gland morphology is poorly understood because it is based on two-dimensional (2D) histological observations. To more fully describe uterine gland morphogenesis, we generated three-dimensional (3D) models of postnatal uterine glands from P0 to P21, using light sheet microscopy. At birth (P0), there were no glands. At P8, we found bud- and teardrop-shaped epithelial invaginations. By P11, the forming glands were elongated epithelial tubes. By P21, the elongated tubes had a sinuous morphology. These morphologies are homogeneously distributed along the anterior-posterior axis of the uterus. To facilitate uterine gland analyses, we propose a novel 3D staging system of uterine gland morphology during postnatal development in the mouse. We define 6 stages: Stage 0: Aglandular, Stage 1: Bud, Stage 2: Teardrop, Stage 3: Elongated, Stage 4: Sinuous, and Stage 5: Primary Branches. This staging system provides a standardized key to assess and quantify uterine gland morphology that can be used for studies of uterine gland development and pathology. In addition, our studies suggest that gland formation initiation occurs during P8 and P11. However, between P11 and P21 gland formation initiation stops and all glands elongate and become sinuous.


Author(s):  
Yuta Otsuka ◽  
Hirokazu Tsukaya

AbstractOrganisms have a variety of three-dimensional (3D) structures that change over time. These changes include twisting, which is 3D deformation that cannot happen in two dimensions. Twisting is linked to important adaptive functions of organs, such as adjusting the orientation of leaves and flowers in plants to align with environmental stimuli (e.g. light, gravity). Despite its importance, the underlying mechanism for twisting remains to be determined, partly because there is no rigorous method for quantifying the twisting of plant organs. Conventional studies have relied on approximate measurements of the twisting angle in 2D, with arbitrary choices of observation angle. Here, we present the first rigorous quantification of the 3D twisting angles of Arabidopsis petioles based on light sheet microscopy. Mathematical separation of bending and twisting with strict definition of petiole cross-sections were implemented; differences in the spatial distribution of bending and twisting were detected via the quantification of angles along the petiole. Based on the measured values, we discuss that minute degrees of differential growth can result in pronounced twisting in petioles.


2017 ◽  
Vol 153 (4) ◽  
pp. 898-900 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sebastian Zundler ◽  
Anika Klingberg ◽  
Daniela Schillinger ◽  
Sarah Fischer ◽  
Clemens Neufert ◽  
...  

PLoS ONE ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. e96551 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kavya Mohan ◽  
Subhajit B. Purnapatra ◽  
Partha Pratim Mondal

eLife ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lillian K Fritz-Laylin ◽  
Megan Riel-Mehan ◽  
Bi-Chang Chen ◽  
Samuel J Lord ◽  
Thomas D Goddard ◽  
...  

Leukocytes and other amoeboid cells change shape as they move, forming highly dynamic, actin-filled pseudopods. Although we understand much about the architecture and dynamics of thin lamellipodia made by slow-moving cells on flat surfaces, conventional light microscopy lacks the spatial and temporal resolution required to track complex pseudopods of cells moving in three dimensions. We therefore employed lattice light sheet microscopy to perform three-dimensional, time-lapse imaging of neutrophil-like HL-60 cells crawling through collagen matrices. To analyze three-dimensional pseudopods we: (i) developed fluorescent probe combinations that distinguish cortical actin from dynamic, pseudopod-forming actin networks, and (ii) adapted molecular visualization tools from structural biology to render and analyze complex cell surfaces. Surprisingly, three-dimensional pseudopods turn out to be composed of thin (<0.75 µm), flat sheets that sometimes interleave to form rosettes. Their laminar nature is not templated by an external surface, but likely reflects a linear arrangement of regulatory molecules. Although we find that Arp2/3-dependent pseudopods are dispensable for three-dimensional locomotion, their elimination dramatically decreases the frequency of cell turning, and pseudopod dynamics increase when cells change direction, highlighting the important role pseudopods play in pathfinding.


Cells ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 1255
Author(s):  
Norio Yamashita ◽  
Masahiko Morita ◽  
Hideo Yokota ◽  
Yuko Mimori-Kiyosue

From cells to organisms, every living system is three-dimensional (3D), but the performance of fluorescence microscopy has been largely limited when attempting to obtain an overview of systems’ dynamic processes in three dimensions. Recently, advanced light-sheet illumination technologies, allowing drastic improvement in spatial discrimination, volumetric imaging times, and phototoxicity/photobleaching, have been making live imaging to collect precise and reliable 3D information increasingly feasible. In particular, lattice light-sheet microscopy (LLSM), using an ultrathin light-sheet, enables whole-cell 3D live imaging of cellular processes, including mitosis, at unprecedented spatiotemporal resolution for extended periods of time. This technology produces immense and complex data, including a significant amount of information, raising new challenges for big image data analysis and new possibilities for data utilization. Once the data are digitally archived in a computer, the data can be reused for various purposes by anyone at any time. Such an information science approach has the potential to revolutionize the use of bioimage data, and provides an alternative method for cell biology research in a data-driven manner. In this article, we introduce examples of analyzing digital mitotic spindles and discuss future perspectives in cell biology.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Niall Hanrahan ◽  
Simon I. R. Lane ◽  
Peter Johnson ◽  
Konstantinos Bourdakos ◽  
Christopher Brereton ◽  
...  

AbstractLight sheet microscopy (LSM) has emerged as one of most profound three dimensional (3D) imaging tools in the life sciences over the last decade. However, LSM is currently performed with fluorescence detection on one- or multi-photon excitation. Label-free LSM imaging approaches have been rather limited. Second Harmonic Generation (SHG) imaging is a label-free technique that has enabled detailed investigation of collagenous structures, including its distribution and remodelling in cancers and respiratory tissue, and how these link to disease. SHG is generally regarded as having only forward- and back-scattering components, apparently precluding the orthogonal detection geometry used in Light Sheet Microscopy. In this work we demonstrate SHG imaging on a light sheet microscope (SHG-LSM) using a rotated Airy beam configuration that demonstrates a powerful new approach to direct, without any further processing or deconvolution, 3D imaging of harmonophores such as collagen in biological samples. We provide unambiguous identification of SHG signals on the LSM through its wavelength and polarisation sensitivity. In a multimodal LSM setup we demonstrate that SHG and two-photon signals can be acquired on multiple types of different biological samples. We further show that SHG-LSM is sensitive to changes in collagen synthesis within lung fibroblast 3D cell cultures. This work expands on the existing optical methods available for use with light sheet microscopy, adding a further label-free imaging technique which can be combined with other detection modalities to realise a powerful multi-modal microscope for 3D bioimaging.


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