Kombiniertes Atomic Force/konfokales Laserscanning-Mikroskop

• Subject Area: Basic Research in Biology and Medicine
• Term: Funded in 2011
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 214884105

Cells send and receive Signals which cross the plasma membrane modifying cellular function. Membrane receptors, ion channels, cytoskeletal elements and intracellular signaling molecules interact with each other allowing cells to match their demands. It has been recently realized that the mechanical properties are crucial for appropriate cellular function, e.g. mechanically abnormal cells have problems to migrate, deform, attach to matrices and adjust to the ambient environment. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) is the method of choice allowing to quantify mechanical parameters at the level of single cells. This technique, based on a mechanical sensor which directly interacts with the object under study, measures stiffness of cells or molecules, adhesion of cells or molecules to different biological Substrates and simultaneously Images cell surface topography at the nanoscale. Combining the AFM with a confocal laser scan microscope (CLSM) in one single piece of equipment (AFM-CLSM) allows to follow intracellular signaling of molecules and, at the same time, measure alterations in cellular nanomechanics. This unique combination of measurements, performed in individual living cells, opens new perspectives for the understanding of cellular dynamics.

• DFG Programme: Major Research Instrumentation
• Instrumentation Group: 5091 Rasterkraft-Mikroskope
• Applicant Institution: Universität Münster
• Leader: Professor Dr. Hans Oberleithner