Unleashing Optics and Optoacoustics for Developmental Biology

The past decade marked an optical revolution in biology: an unprecedented number of optical techniques were developed and adopted for biological exploration, demonstrating increasing interest in optical imaging and in vivo interrogations. Optical methods have become faster and have reached nanoscale resolution, and are now complemented by optoacoustic (photoacoustic) methods capable of imaging whole specimens in vivo. Never before were so many optical imaging barriers broken in such a short time-frame: with new approaches to optical microscopy and mesoscopy came an increased ability to image biology at unprecedented speed, resolution, and depth. This review covers the most relevant techniques for imaging in developmental biology, and offers an outlook on the next steps for these technologies and their applications.

TrendsThe use of the NIR II (1000–1700 nm) range of the spectrum will open new ways to image deeper in vivo with unprecedented spatial resolution.Multispectral optoacoustic tomography is capable of imaging specific fluorophores and chromophores through several centimeters of tissue while maintaining resolution under 100 μm.Novel light sheet microscopy approaches are capable of 3D imaging in small transparent specimens with subcellular resolution at rates of 200 sections per second.New advances in super-resolution approaches can image live cells with resolution under 100 nm and offer 3D imaging capabilities.