Multiphoton imaging of biological samples during freezing and heating

We applied multiphoton microscopic imaging to observe freezing and heating effects in plant- and animal cell samples. The experimental setups consisted of a multiphoton imaging system and a heating and cooling stage which allows for precise temperature control from liquid nitrogen temperature (-196°C; 77 K) up to +600°C (873 K) with heating/freezing rates between 0.01 K/min and 150 K/min. Two multiphoton imaging systems were used: a system based on a modified optical microscope and a flexible mobile system. To illustrate the imaging capabilities, plant leafs as well as animal cells were microscopically imaged in vivo during freezing based on autofluorescence lifetime and intensity of intrinsic molecules. The measurements illustrate the usefulness of multiphoton imaging to investigate freezing effects on animal and plant cells.