Laser Scanning Confocal Microscopy

Laser scanning confocal microscopy employs a pair of pinhole apertures to limit the specimen focal plane to a confined volume approximately a micron in size to image fluorescently labeled specimens with significant three-dimensional structure. Applications of laser scanning confocal microscopy in the biomedical sciences include the imaging of the spatial distribution of macromolecules in either fixed or living cells, the automated collection of 3D data, the imaging of multiple labeled specimens and the measurement of physiological events in living cells.