title: Further developments of the laser scanning confocal microscope in biomedical research.
abstract: The laser scanning confocal microscope (LSCM) is a valuable research tool for imaging fluorescently labeled biological specimens. Rather than cutting sections of the tissue with a knife, it is now possible to produce relatively noninvasive "optical sections" using the LSCM as an imaging tool. This has made the imaging of living cells in situ more of a practical option. This minireview briefly describes some of the improvements made to the LSCM over the past 5 years and, in more detail, outlines many of the current biomedical applications of the LSCM, including single and multiple labeling of fixed and living specimens, physiological imaging, 3-dimensional imaging, and the use of the LSCM for lineage tracing and in correlative microscopy.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Wisconsin, Madison 53706, USA. paddock@facstaff.wisc.edu
authors.forename: S W
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Paddock
mesh_terms: D019412:Anatomy, Cross-Sectional; D000818:Animals; D019070:Cell Lineage; D005314:Embryonic and Fetal Development; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods; D018613:Microscopy, Confocal / Q000379:methods*; D012106:Research / Q000295:instrumentation*; D016707:Tissue Fixation / Q000379:methods