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Use of Astronomy Filters in Fluorescence Microscopy

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 January 2012

Jörg Piper
Jörg Piper*
Affiliation:
Meduna Clinic Group, Clinic “Meduna”—Internal Medicine, Road Clara-Viebig No. 4, D-56864 Bad Bertrich, Bad Bertrich Rheinland-Pfalz 56864, Germany
*
Corresponding author. E-mail: webmaster@prof-piper.com
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Abstract

Monochrome astronomy filters are well suited for use as excitation or suppression filters in fluorescence microscopy. Because of their particular optical design, such filters can be combined with standard halogen light sources for excitation in many fluorescent probes. In this “low energy excitation,” photobleaching (fading) or other irritations of native specimens are avoided. Photomicrographs can be taken from living motile fluorescent specimens also with a flash so that fluorescence images can be created free from indistinctness caused by movement. Special filter cubes or dichroic mirrors are not needed for our method. By use of suitable astronomy filters, fluorescence microscopy can be carried out with standard laboratory microscopes equipped with condensers for bright-field (BF) and dark-field (DF) illumination in transmitted light. In BF excitation, the background brightness can be modulated in tiny steps up to dark or black. Moreover, standard industry microscopes fitted with a vertical illuminator for examinations of opaque probes in DF or BF illumination based on incident light (wafer inspections, for instance) can also be used for excitation in epi-illumination when adequate astronomy filters are inserted as excitatory and suppression filters in the illuminating and imaging light path. In all variants, transmission bands can be modulated by transmission shift.

Keywords

astronomy filtersfluorescence microscopytransmission shiftexcitationbright fielddark fieldincident light
Type
Techniques Development
Information
Microscopy and Microanalysis , Volume 18 , Issue 1 , February 2012 , pp. 196 - 211
Copyright
Copyright © Microscopy Society of America 2012

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References

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