Studying nucleic envelope and plasma membrane mechanics of eukaryotic cells using confocal reflectance interferometric microscopy

Vijay Raj Singh, Yi An Yang, Hanry Yu, Roger D. Kamm, Zahid Yaqoob () and Peter T. C. So ()
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Vijay Raj Singh: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Yi An Yang: National University of Singapore
Hanry Yu: Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology
Roger D. Kamm: Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology
Zahid Yaqoob: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Peter T. C. So: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Nature Communications, 2019, vol. 10, issue 1, 1-8

Abstract: Abstract Mechanical stress on eukaryotic nucleus has been implicated in a diverse range of diseases including muscular dystrophy and cancer metastasis. Today, there are very few non-perturbative methods to quantify nuclear mechanical properties. Interferometric microscopy, also known as quantitative phase microscopy (QPM), is a powerful tool for studying red blood cell biomechanics. The existing QPM tools, however, have not been utilized to study biomechanics of complex eukaryotic cells either due to lack of depth sectioning, limited phase measurement sensitivity, or both. Here, we present depth-resolved confocal reflectance interferometric microscopy as the next generation QPM to study nuclear and plasma membrane biomechanics. The proposed system features multiple confocal scanning foci, affording 1.5 micron depth-resolution and millisecond frame rate. Furthermore, a near common-path interferometer enables quantifying nanometer-scale membrane fluctuations with better than 200 picometers sensitivity. Our results present accurate quantification of nucleic envelope and plasma membrane fluctuations in embryonic stem cells.

Date: 2019
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-11645-4

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