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Bhattacharyya ND, Kyaw W, McDonald MM, Dhenni R, Grootveld AK, Xiao Y, Chai R, Khoo WH, Danserau LC, Sergio CM, Timpson P, Lee WM, Croucher PI, Phan TG. Minimally invasive longitudinal intravital imaging of cellular dynamics in intact long bone. Nat Protoc 2023; 18:3856-3880. [PMID: 37857852 DOI: 10.1038/s41596-023-00894-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2023] [Accepted: 07/28/2023] [Indexed: 10/21/2023]
Abstract
Intravital two-photon microscopy enables deep-tissue imaging at high temporospatial resolution in live animals. However, the endosteal bone compartment and underlying bone marrow pose unique challenges to optical imaging as light is absorbed, scattered and dispersed by thick mineralized bone matrix and the adipose-rich bone marrow. Early bone intravital imaging methods exploited gaps in the cranial sutures to bypass the need to penetrate through cortical bone. More recently, investigators have developed invasive methods to thin the cortical bone or implant imaging windows to image cellular dynamics in weight-bearing long bones. Here, we provide a step-by-step procedure for the preparation of animals for minimally invasive, nondestructive, longitudinal intravital imaging of the murine tibia. This method involves the use of mixed bone marrow radiation chimeras to unambiguously double-label osteoclasts and osteomorphs. The tibia is exposed by a simple skin incision and an imaging chamber constructed using thermoconductive T-putty. Imaging sessions up to 12 h long can be repeated over multiple timepoints to provide a longitudinal time window into the endosteal and marrow niches. The approach can be used to investigate cellular dynamics in bone remodeling, cancer cell life cycle and hematopoiesis, as well as long-lived humoral and cellular immunity. The procedure requires an hour to complete and is suitable for users with minimal prior expertise in small animal surgery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nayan Deger Bhattacharyya
- Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- St Vincent's Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Wunna Kyaw
- Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- St Vincent's Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Michelle M McDonald
- Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- St Vincent's Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- Charles Perkins Centre, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Rama Dhenni
- Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- St Vincent's Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Abigail K Grootveld
- Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- St Vincent's Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Ya Xiao
- Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- St Vincent's Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Ryan Chai
- Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- St Vincent's Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Weng Hua Khoo
- Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- St Vincent's Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Linda C Danserau
- Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- St Vincent's Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- ACRF INCITe Centre for Intravital Imaging of Niches for Cancer Immune Therapy, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - C Marcelo Sergio
- Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Paul Timpson
- Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- St Vincent's Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- ACRF INCITe Centre for Intravital Imaging of Niches for Cancer Immune Therapy, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Woei Ming Lee
- ACRF INCITe Centre for Intravital Imaging of Niches for Cancer Immune Therapy, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- John Curtin School of Medical Research, Australian National University, Canberra, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Peter I Croucher
- Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- St Vincent's Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- ACRF INCITe Centre for Intravital Imaging of Niches for Cancer Immune Therapy, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Tri Giang Phan
- Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
- St Vincent's Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
- ACRF INCITe Centre for Intravital Imaging of Niches for Cancer Immune Therapy, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
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