When it comes to laboratories, several types of tools and equipment are required daily. One of the most popular ones used in medical labs and microbiology labs are; fluorescent microscopes. These microscopes are now a significant part of the labs where there is a need to observe live cells. The high specificity and sensitivity of the fluorescent microscope make it crucial for diagnostic studies.
Read ahead to know more about the fluorescent microscope in India and its applications.
The dye is used in fluorescent Microscopes.
A fluorescent microscope only works when the sample is treated with the fluorescent pigment. In most of these microscopes, the fluorophore is used. The fluorescent dye can produce a longer wavelength of light after getting exposed to a shorter wavelength of light. These pigments have cyclic or plane molecules with pi bonds and aromatic molecules. They bind with the living cells, which makes them effective in illuminating the cellular structures.
Working on fluorescent Microscopes.
Different parts make a fluorescent microscope. Some of these components are:
- Lamp – In this microscope type, mercury vapor or xenon arc lamp is used. However, in more advanced microscopes, lasers and power LEDs are used.
- Optical filters – There are three sub-components when it comes to the optical filters of fluorescent microscopes. The excitation filter of the microscope only allows those wavelengths of light that are emitted by the fluorescence pigment. Dichroic filter causes the epi-fluorescence illumination by transmitting emission band light and reflecting the excitation band light.
- Condenser – This type of microscope uses a darkfield condenser that creates a dark background.
The light source produced high-energy short-wavelength light, passing through the excitation filter. The filter removes unnecessary wavelength light and only allows shorter wavelength. Then the light strikes the dichroic filter and gets reflected to fall on the sample dyed in fluorescent pigment. The selection absorbed the shorter wavelength light and produced low-energy longer wavelength light. The light passes through the emission filter. The filtered light reaches the detector, and then one can see the fluorescent images of the cells and structures within.
Applications of a Fluorescent Microscope.
This type of fluorescent microscope in India is mainly used for labeling live or static cells. The usage of fluorescent pigments allows easy identification of different cellular structures and their movements. It is used in microbial studies, medical studies, and diagnostic tests.
Benefits of a fluorescent Microscope.
Some of the benefits of using these microscopes are:
- The fluorescent microscope has higher specificity to isolate the living cell proteins amongst the non-fluorescence molecules.
- This microscope is highly advantageous in studying living cell specimens.
- Multiple molecules and proteins can be tracked at the same time using different fluorescent pigments.
- The sensitivity of these microscopes is high, as they can detect 50 to 60 molecules in an area of 1 cubic micrometer.
Fluorescent microscopes are one of the major equipment used in several lab setups these days. If one plans to buy one for their lab, it is crucial to pay attention to the manufacturer and supplier. Choosing a high-quality manufacturing company like Quasmo will help get the best results.