title: Ablation of cytoskeletal filaments and mitochondria in live cells using a femtosecond laser nanoscissor.
abstract: Analysis of cell regulation requires methods for perturbing molecular processes within living cells with spatial discrimination on the nanometer-scale. We present a technique for ablating molecular structures in living cells using low-repetition rate, low-energy femtosecond laser pulses. By tightly focusing these pulses beneath the cell membrane, we ablate cellular material inside the cell through nonlinear processes. We selectively removed sub-micrometer regions of the cytoskeleton and individual mitochondria without altering neighboring structures or compromising cell viability. This nanoscissor technique enables non-invasive manipulation of the structural machinery of living cells with several-hundred-nanometer resolution. Using this approach, we unequivocally demonstrate that mitochondria are structurally independent functional units, and do not form a continuous network as suggested by some past studies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics, Harvard University, USA.
authors.forename: Nan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.forename: Dabajyoti
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Datta
authors.forename: Chris B
authors.initials: CB
authors.lastname: Schaffer
authors.forename: Philip
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: LeDuc
authors.forename: Donald E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Ingber
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Mazur
mesh_terms: D016475:3T3 Cells; D000199:Actins / Q000737:chemistry; D000818:Animals; D001703:Biophysics / Q000379:methods; D002417:Cattle; D002470:Cell Survival; D003599:Cytoskeleton / Q000378:metabolism*; D005347:Fibroblasts / Q000378:metabolism; D007834:Lasers; D008027:Light; D051379:Mice; D008853:Microscopy; D018625:Microscopy, Atomic Force; D018613:Microscopy, Confocal; D008856:Microscopy, Fluorescence; D008870:Microtubules / Q000737:chemistry; D008928:Mitochondria / Q000378:metabolism*; D050997:Nanomedicine / Q000379:methods; D036103:Nanotechnology; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D000199:Actins