A qualitative comparison of 3D visualization in Xenopus laevis using a traditional method and a non-destructive method

Emilie Descamps; Jan Buytaert; Barbara De Kegel; Joris Dirckx; Dominique Adriaens

doi:10.26496/bjz.2012.151

Authors

Emilie Descamps Research Group Evolutionary Morphology of Vertebrates, Ghent University, K.L. Ledeganckstraat 35, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
Jan Buytaert Laboratory of BioMedical Physics, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, 2020 Antwerp, Belgium
Barbara De Kegel Research Group Evolutionary Morphology of Vertebrates, Ghent University, K.L. Ledeganckstraat 35, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
Joris Dirckx Laboratory of BioMedical Physics, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, 2020 Antwerp, Belgium
Dominique Adriaens Research Group Evolutionary Morphology of Vertebrates, Ghent University, K.L. Ledeganckstraat 35, 9000 Ghent, Belgium

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.26496/bjz.2012.151

Keywords:

vertebrates, histological sectioning, optical sectioning, Xenopus, 3D visualization

Abstract

Many tools are currently available to investigate and visualize soft and hard tissues in animals both in high-resolution and three dimensions. The most popular and traditional method is based on destructive histological techniques. However, these techniques have some specific limitations. In order to avoid those limitations, various non-destructive approaches have surfaced in the last decades. One of those is micro-CT-scanning. In the best conditions, resolution achieved in micro-CT currently approaches that of standard histological protocols. In addition to bone, soft tissues can also be made visible through micro-CT-scanning. However, discriminating between structures of the same tissue and among different tissue types remains a challenge. An alternative approach, which has not yet been explored to its full potential for comparative anatomy studies, is Orthogonal-Plane Fluorescence Optical Sectioning (OPFOS) microscopy or tomography, also known as (Laser) Light Sheet based Fluorescence Microscopy (LSFM). In this study, we compare OPFOS with light microscopy, applying those techniques to the model organism Xenopus laevis. The potential of both methods for discrimination between different types of tissues, as well as different structures of the same tissue type, is tested and illustrated. Since the histological sections provided a better resolution, adjacent structures of the same tissue type could be discerned more easily compared to our OPFOS images. However, we obtained a more naturally-shaped 3D model of the musculoskeletal system of Xenopus laevis with OPFOS. An overview of the advantages and disadvantages of both techniques is given and their applicability for a wider scope of biological research is discussed.

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