Isolation of neuronal substructures and precise neural microdissection using a nanocutting device

We describe a set of microfabricated nanocutting devices with a cutting edge of less than 20 nm radius of curvature that enables high precision microdissection and subcellular isolation of neuronal structures. With these devices, it is possible to isolate functional substructures from neurons in culture such as segments of axons and dendrites, dendritic spines and Nodes of Ranvier. By fine-tuning the mechanical compliance of these devices, they can also act as alternatives to costly laser capture microdissection workstations for harvesting specific neuronal populations from tissue sections for analysis. The small size of the device (1 mm2 × 100 μm) allows convenient insertion into researcher specific experimental set-ups. Its ease of use and possibility for batch fabrication makes this a highly effective and versatile tool for tissue microdissection and the microanalysis of neuronal function.