How to Weigh a Single Cell
December 19, 2017 | Terry Sharrer
“We established that the weight of living cells fluctuates continuously by about one to four percent as they regulate their total weight. . . .” To make this observation it was necessary to design and build a scanning microscope that was sensitive enough to weigh a single cell. The maker of that instrument was Nanosurf AG in the town of Liestal, Switzerland (southeast of Basel). It features a cantilevered arm that can retrieve one cell from a plate and then allows two lasers to generate oscillations which can be interpreted for weight. What causes cells to fluctuate their weight—whether normal, cancerous, or cells exposed to various stresses—are questions this tool will help to answer. MORE
Image Credit: Nanosurf AG