Dynamics of cancer cell filopodia characterized by super-resolution bright-field optical microscopy

TH Hsu, WY Liao, PC Yang, CC Wang, JL Xiao… - Optics …, 2007 - opg.optica.org
TH Hsu, WY Liao, PC Yang, CC Wang, JL Xiao, CH Lee
Optics Express, 2007opg.optica.org
We explore the dynamics of cancer cell filopodia of diameters around 200 nm by using
super-resolution bright-field optical microscopy. The high contrast required by the super-
resolution image-restoration process is from the nanometer topographic sensitivity of non-
interferometric widefield optical profilometry, rather than fluorescence labeling. Because the
image-acquisition rate of this bright-field system is 20 frames/min, fast cellular dynamics can
be captured and then analyzed. We successfully observe the growth and activities of the …
We explore the dynamics of cancer cell filopodia of diameters around 200 nm by using super-resolution bright-field optical microscopy. The high contrast required by the super-resolution image-restoration process is from the nanometer topographic sensitivity of non-interferometric widefield optical profilometry, rather than fluorescence labeling. Because the image-acquisition rate of this bright-field system is 20 frames/min, fast cellular dynamics can be captured and then analyzed. We successfully observe the growth and activities of the filopodia of a CL1–0 lung cancer cell. In the culturing condition, we measure that the filopodia exhibit an average elongation rate of 90 nm/sec, and an average shrinkage rate of 75 nm/sec. With the treatment of epidermal growth factor, the elongation and shrinkage rates increase to 110 nm/sec and 100 nm/sec respectively. We also find that the treatment of epidermal growth factor raises the number of filopodia by nearly a factor of 2, which implies enhancement of cell motility.
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