Cryomicroscopy

Cryomicroscopy is a technique where a microscope is equipped such that the object to inspected can be cooled below room temperature. Technically, cryo microscopy implies compatibility between a cryostat and the microscope. Most cryostat's are making use of a cryogenic fluid such a liquid helium or liquid nitrogen. There exist at least two motivations for cryo microscopy. One is to improve the microscopy. Cryogenic electron microscopy, for example, enables to study proteins with limited radiation damage. Here the protein structure may not change with temperature, but the cryogenic environment enables improved electron microscopy. Another motivation is to apply microscopy to a low temperature phenomenon. Scanning tunnelling microscopy under cryogenic environment, for example, allows to study superconductivity that does not exist at room temperature.

History

Although optical microscopes have existed for centuries, cryo microscopy is a modern methodology. In the 1950'ties, ice crystals were studied by installing an electron microscope inside an igloo.[1] Around 1980, adaption of electron microscope, vacuum and cryostat led to the beginning of modern cryo microscopy. This development of cryo electron microscopy was awarded the 2017 chemistry Nobel Prize to Jacques Dubochet, Joachim Frank and Richard Henderson.[2]

Cryogenic electron microscopy
Main article: Cryogenic electron microscopy

Scanning or transmission electron microscopy carried out under cryogenic condition is known as cryoSEM and cryoTEM, respectively.

Cryogenic optical microscopy

Cryogenic environment is used in combination with different types of optical microscopy techniques. Growth of artificial ice crystals are for example studied by optical microscopy.[3] With polarized light microscopy, birefringence effect from for example orthorhombic domain structures can be observed at cryogenic temperatures.[4] In life science, fluorescence microscopy has enabled resolution beyond the diffraction limit.[5][6] The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2014 was jointly awarded to Eric Betzig, Stefan Hell, and William E. Moerner "for the development of super-resolved fluorescence microscopy".[7] Cryogenic environment minimize bleaching which in turn improve the contrast of the microscopy technique.

References
  1. Kumai, Motoi (1951-06-01). "ELECTRON-MICROSCOPE STUDY OF SNOW-CRYSTAL NUCLEI". Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences. 8 (3): 151–156. doi:10.1175/1520-0469(1951)008<0151:EMSOSC>2.0.CO;2. ISSN 1520-0469.
  2. Cressey, Daniel; Callaway, Ewen (2017-10-01). "Cryo-electron microscopy wins chemistry Nobel". Nature. 550 (7675): 167–167. doi:10.1038/nature.2017.22738. ISSN 1476-4687.
  3. Sazaki, Gen; Zepeda, Salvador; Nakatsubo, Shunichi; Yokoyama, Etsuro; Furukawa, Yoshinori (2010-11-16). "Elementary steps at the surface of ice crystals visualized by advanced optical microscopy". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 107 (46): 19702–19707. doi:10.1073/pnas.1008866107. ISSN 0027-8424. PMC 2993344. PMID 20974928.
  4. Katakura, I.; Tokunaga, M.; Matsuo, A.; Kawaguchi, K.; Kindo, K.; Hitomi, M.; Akahoshi, D.; Kuwahara, H. (2010-04-12). "Development of high-speed polarizing imaging system for operation in high pulsed magnetic field". Review of Scientific Instruments. 81 (4): 043701. doi:10.1063/1.3359954. ISSN 0034-6748.
  5. Hulleman, Christiaan N.; Huisman, Maximiliaan; Moerland, Robert J.; Grünwald, David; Stallinga, Sjoerd; Rieger, Bernd (2018). "Fluorescence Polarization Control for On–Off Switching of Single Molecules at Cryogenic Temperatures". Small Methods. 2 (9): 1700323. doi:10.1002/smtd.201700323. ISSN 2366-9608. PMC 6592266. PMID 31240238.
  6. Wegel, Eva; Göhler, Antonia; Lagerholm, B. Christoffer; Wainman, Alan; Uphoff, Stephan; Kaufmann, Rainer; Dobbie, Ian M. (2016-06-06). "Imaging cellular structures in super-resolution with SIM, STED and Localisation Microscopy: A practical comparison". Scientific Reports. 6 (1): 27290. doi:10.1038/srep27290. ISSN 2045-2322.
  7. Möckl, Leonhard; Lamb, Don C.; Bräuchle, Christoph (2014-12-15). "Super-resolved Fluorescence Microscopy: Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2014 for Eric Betzig, Stefan Hell, and William E. Moerner". Angewandte Chemie International Edition. 53 (51): 13972–13977. doi:10.1002/anie.201410265.
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