Three-dimensional ultrastructural imaging reveals the nanoscale architecture of mammalian cells
Shengkun Yao,
Jiadong Fan,
Zhiyun Chen,
Yunbing Zong,
Jianhua Zhang,
Zhibin Sun,
Lijuan Zhang,
Renzhong Tai,
Zhi Liu,
Chunying Chen,
Huaidong Jiang
Affiliations
Shengkun Yao
School of Physical Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, 393 Middle Huaxia Road, Pudong, Shanghai 201210, People's Republic of China
Jiadong Fan
School of Physical Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, 393 Middle Huaxia Road, Pudong, Shanghai 201210, People's Republic of China
Zhiyun Chen
CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology of China, No. 11 ZhongGuanCun BeiYiTiao, Beijing 100190, People's Republic of China
Yunbing Zong
State Key Laboratory of Crystal Materials, Shandong University, 27 Shanda Nanlu, Jinan, Shandong 250100, People's Republic of China
Jianhua Zhang
School of Physical Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, 393 Middle Huaxia Road, Pudong, Shanghai 201210, People's Republic of China
Zhibin Sun
School of Physical Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, 393 Middle Huaxia Road, Pudong, Shanghai 201210, People's Republic of China
Lijuan Zhang
Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility, Shanghai Institute of Applied Physics, Chinese Academy of Science, 239 Zhangheng Road, Pudong New District, Shanghai 201204, People's Republic of China
Renzhong Tai
Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility, Shanghai Institute of Applied Physics, Chinese Academy of Science, 239 Zhangheng Road, Pudong New District, Shanghai 201204, People's Republic of China
Zhi Liu
School of Physical Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, 393 Middle Huaxia Road, Pudong, Shanghai 201210, People's Republic of China
Chunying Chen
CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology of China, No. 11 ZhongGuanCun BeiYiTiao, Beijing 100190, People's Republic of China
Huaidong Jiang
School of Physical Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, 393 Middle Huaxia Road, Pudong, Shanghai 201210, People's Republic of China
Knowledge of the interactions between nanomaterials and large-size mammalian cells, including cellular uptake, intracellular localization and translocation, has greatly advanced nanomedicine and nanotoxicology. Imaging techniques that can locate nanomaterials within the structures of intact large-size cells at nanoscale resolution play crucial roles in acquiring this knowledge. Here, the quantitative imaging of intracellular nanomaterials in three dimensions was performed by combining dual-energy contrast X-ray microscopy and an iterative tomographic algorithm termed equally sloped tomography (EST). Macrophages with a size of ∼20 µm that had been exposed to the potential antitumour agent [Gd@C82(OH)22]n were investigated. Large numbers of nanoparticles (NPs) aggregated within the cell and were mainly located in phagosomes. No NPs were observed in the nucleus. Imaging of the nanomedicine within whole cells advanced the understanding of the high-efficiency antitumour activity and the low toxicity of this agent. This imaging technique can be used to probe nanomaterials within intact large-size cells at nanometre resolution uniformly in three dimensions and may greatly benefit the fields of nanomedicine and nanotoxicology.
