High-resolution optical imaging techniques allowed the visualization of nanoscale biological structures and molecules. Current fluorescence-based super-resolution techniques are limited in throughput and quantification. We developed a high-resolution versatile imaging modality, Vibrational Imaging of Swelled Tissues and Analysis (VISTA), based on a sample-expansion vibrational imaging strategy. Label-free interrogations of protein-rich biological structures were visualized with resolution down to 78 nm. We validated the imaging specificity of VISTA with correlative immunofluorescence images. Furthermore, a U-net convolutional network was trained to learn the correlations between the two imaging modalities were learned by feeding the image sets, allowing us to predict the volumetric localization of nuclei, blood vessels, neuronal cells, and dendrites in mouse brain tissues. We further applied VISTA to investigate the protein-rich aggregates in biological samples. Nanoscale structures including hollows in polyQ aggregates in transfected HeLa cells, and fine protein filaments of amyloid-beta (Aβ) aggregates in 5XFAD mouse brain were characterized. Multi-component volumetric prediction with segmentation of core and peripheral aggregates aided the differentiation of aggregates' phenotypes. VISTA achieved a 7-color holistic view of biological samples. This precise and multiplex high-resolution imaging modality opens new avenues for versatile biomedical studies.

Super-resolution label-free volumetric vibrational imaging of tissues and protein aggregates

Fall 2022 abstracts, posters, and presentations will launch in mid-September.

ACS Fall 2022

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.