Department of Basic Sciences, Military College of Engineering, National University of Science and Technology (NUST), Islamabad, Pakistan.
Department of Physics, The Women University Multan, Pakistan.
Photodiagnosis Photodyn Ther. 2021 Mar;33:102096. doi: 10.1016/j.pdpdt.2020.102096. Epub 2020 Nov 11.
Cell refractive index (RI) is an intrinsic optical parameter that governs the propagation of light (i.e., scattering and absorption) in the cell matrix. The RI of cell is sensitively correlated with its mass distribution and thereby has the capability to provide important insights for diverse biological models. Herein, we review the cell refractive index and the fundamental models for measurement of cell RI, summarize the published RI data of cell and cell organelles and discuss the associated insights. Illustrative applications of cell RI in cell biology are also outlined. Finally, future research trends and applications of cell RI, including novel imaging techniques, reshaping flow cytometry and microfluidic platforms for single cell manipulation are discussed. The rapid technological advances in optical imaging integrated with microfluidic regime seems to enable deeper understanding of subcellular dynamics with high spatio-temporal resolution in real time.
细胞折射率（RI）是一种内在的光学参数，它控制着光在细胞基质中的传播（即散射和吸收）。细胞的 RI 与细胞的质量分布密切相关，因此能够为各种生物模型提供重要的见解。本文综述了细胞折射率和细胞 RI 测量的基本模型，总结了已发表的细胞和细胞器的 RI 数据，并讨论了相关的见解。还概述了细胞 RI 在细胞生物学中的应用。最后，讨论了细胞 RI 的未来研究趋势和应用，包括新型成像技术、重塑流式细胞术和用于单细胞操作的微流控平台。光学成像与微流控技术的快速发展似乎使人们能够以高时空分辨率实时深入了解亚细胞动力学。
