Imaging of molecular and cellular functions by scanning probe microscopy

扫描探针显微镜形成了一个新的显微镜家族，它在样品表面扫描一个尖锐的探测尖端，提供关于固体样品表面特征的高分辨率信息。本研究将这些显微镜（包括原子力显微镜）应用于生物样品的观察。为此，我们还研究了适用于扫描探针显微镜的制备方法和观察技术。得到的结果如下：1。研究了用原子力显微镜高分辨率观察脱氧核糖核酸和肌球蛋白等大分子的技术。这些样品通常安装在肉质裂隙云母上，在空气环境下用显微镜观察。在本研究中，我们将FM控制系统应用于真空环境下大分子的可视化，并成功地以高分辨率观察到它们。研究了原子力显微镜在液体环境下观察生物样品（如染色体）的方法。虽然接触模式通常用于测量液体中的软样品，但我们研究了原子力显微镜在动态模式下的操作方法。通过适当调整谐振频率、振幅和振动电压等操作参数，我们成功地利用动态模式获得了液体中染色体的清晰图像。动态模式成像的q控制技术有望在没有固定的情况下在液体环境中稳定地显示染色体。

Scanning probe microscopes form a new family of microscopes, which scan a sharp probing tip over the sample surface, providing high resolution information about the surface characteristics of solid samples. This study was undertaken to apply these microscopes (including the atomic force microscope) to the observation of biological samples. For this purpose, we also investigated the preparation methods and observation techniques suitable for scanning probe microscopy. The obtained results are follows :1.We studied the techniques for observing macromolecules such ad the deoxyribonucleic acid and myosin at high resolution with the atomic force microscope. These samples are usually mounted on a fleshly-cleaved mica and observed with the microscope in an air environment. In this study, we applied an FM control system to the visualization of macromolecule in a vacuum environment, and succeeded in observing them at high resolution.2.We investigated the methods for observing biological samples (e.g., chromosomes) with the atomic force microscope in a liquid environment. While a contact mode is generally used for measuring soft samples in liquid, we investigate the method for operating the atomic force microscope in a dynamic mode. By adjusting adequately the operation parameters such as resonance frequency, amplitude and vibration voltage, we succeeded in obtaining clear images of chromosomes in liquid using a dynamic mode. Q-control technique for dynamic mode imaging was expected to be useful for the stable visualization of chromosomes without any fixation in a liquid environment.