Studying the living cells by making use of the time-lapse microscopy is known as live cell imaging. The scientists make use of the live cell imaging in order to get a proper understanding of the biological functions with the help of the cellular dynamics.
There has been a rise in the number of the studies that are making use of the live cell imaging techniques. They help in providing a deep insight into the basic functionality of the cells and the tissues. The live cell imaging technique is being used increasingly owing to the swift developments that are made in the synthetic fluorophore and fluorescent protein technology.
In the recent research that was conducted in the Uppsala University illustrated that how smartphones can be used in making videos of the living cells. The detailed information about the study is published in the PLOS ONE journal.
The tool for the live cell imaging is very crucial for the study of the cells. It is useful in cases where it is necessary to understand how the cells react to a certain drug or toxin while finding out treatment techniques for a particular disease. Moreover, the equipment such as microscopes that are used for the cell imaging is costly.
In the study, they tried to change the conventional method of using the standard inverted microscopes with the high-quality live imaging stations. This was done with the help of few off-the-shelf electronics, 3D-printed parts, and a smartphone. The study provided the result that the new upgraded system gave exceptional cell culture conditions and also offered the facility of high-resolution imaging of the living cells.
The senior lecturer at the Department of Medical Cell Biology at Uppsala University, Mr. Johan Kreuger proposed that their project was done with the intention to show that 3D-printing can bring about a huge change in the way the scientists work around the world. 3D-printing is a cost-effective solution to the researchers that have limited funds for their research activities.
The technique and the technology that was used in this study can be easily adapted and can be modified according to the requirements.