Nondestructive X-ray tomography of brain tissue ultrastructure.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 41310056.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41592-025-02891-0 and PMC identifier 12695642.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
Maps of biological tissues at subcellular detail are key for understanding how organs function. X-ray nanotomography is a promising alternative to volume electron microscopy: it has the potential to nondestructively image millimeter-sized samples at ultrastructural resolution within a few days. A fundamental barrier is that the intense X-rays required for imaging also deform and disintegrate the tissue samples. Here we show a combination of solutions that overcome this barrier: We used a cryogenic and stable sample stage, tailored nonrigid tomographic reconstruction algorithms and an epoxy resin developed for the nuclear and aerospace industry. Tissue samples were resistant to radiation doses exceeding 1.15 × 10<sup>10</sup> Gy, and sub-40 nm isotropic resolution allowed identifying axon bundles, dendrites and synapses in mouse brain tissue without physical sectioning. Using volume electron microscopy, we demonstrate that tissue ultrastructure remains intact after X-ray imaging. Together, this unlocks the potential of X-ray tomography for high-resolution tissue imaging.
Medical subject headings
- Brain
- Tomography, X-Ray