Yang Bin, Treweek Jennifer B, Kulkarni Rajan P, Deverman Benjamin E, Chen Chun-Kan, Lubeck Eric, Shah Sheel, Cai Long, Gradinaru Viviana
Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA.
Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA; Division of Dermatology, Department of Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
Cell. 2014 Aug 14;158(4):945-958. doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2014.07.017. Epub 2014 Jul 31.
Understanding the structure-function relationships at cellular, circuit, and organ-wide scale requires 3D anatomical and phenotypical maps, currently unavailable for many organs across species. At the root of this knowledge gap is the absence of a method that enables whole-organ imaging. Herein, we present techniques for tissue clearing in which whole organs and bodies are rendered macromolecule-permeable and optically transparent, thereby exposing their cellular structure with intact connectivity. We describe PACT (passive clarity technique), a protocol for passive tissue clearing and immunostaining of intact organs; RIMS (refractive index matching solution), a mounting media for imaging thick tissue; and PARS (perfusion-assisted agent release in situ), a method for whole-body clearing and immunolabeling. We show that in rodents PACT, RIMS, and PARS are compatible with endogenous-fluorescence, immunohistochemistry, RNA single-molecule FISH, long-term storage, and microscopy with cellular and subcellular resolution. These methods are applicable for high-resolution, high-content mapping and phenotyping of normal and pathological elements within intact organs and bodies.
要在细胞、神经回路和全器官尺度上理解结构与功能的关系,需要三维解剖和表型图谱,而目前许多物种的许多器官都没有这样的图谱。造成这一知识空白的根本原因是缺乏一种能够对整个器官进行成像的方法。在此,我们介绍了组织透明化技术,通过该技术可使整个器官和身体变得对大分子具有通透性且光学透明,从而展现出其具有完整连接性的细胞结构。我们描述了PACT(被动透明化技术),这是一种用于完整器官被动组织透明化和免疫染色的方案;RIMS(折射率匹配溶液),一种用于厚组织成像的封固介质;以及PARS(原位灌注辅助试剂释放),一种用于全身透明化和免疫标记的方法。我们表明,在啮齿动物中,PACT、RIMS和PARS与内源性荧光、免疫组织化学、RNA单分子FISH、长期保存以及具有细胞和亚细胞分辨率的显微镜检查兼容。这些方法适用于完整器官和身体内正常和病理成分的高分辨率、高内涵图谱绘制和表型分析。