New Techniques of Transgenesis and Imaging: Applications in Neurology and Nephrology. Part I

Abstract

The emerging techniques and applications related to transgenic animals, together with the large progresses in the development of imaging systems finalized at ensuring a high-level resolution, allow nowadays to analyze the finer details of a wide range of pathophysiological phenomena. The combination of the new methods applicable in the two fields, for instance, has made possible not only to explore biological processes in vivo as they occur, but also to analyze them at a whole organ level. At the same time, it is possible to create reconstructions in two or three dimensions of the entire organ, or of its specific functional units. A fourth temporal dimension can also be added thanks to the analysis in time-lapse or to the acquisition of data in continuous. The purpose of this first of two contributions is to review the latest innovations in the fields of microscopy and transgenesis, with particular attention to how these innovations have been implemented, and which benefits derive from their evolution. The possible applications and advantages of using these systems will further be analyzed and evaluated in more detail in the next issue of this survey.