Quantitative Chemical Imaging at the Cellular Level: SIMS, Fluorescence, and Correlative Techniques

The cell is a heterogeneous chemical structure designed to accommodate its complex cellular functions in a living organism. Quantitative chemical imaging at the cellular level enables the investigation of the structural and functional molecular relation underlying cellular processes. We describe here the detailed methodology of the state-of-the-art secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS, NanoSIMS) and fluorescence microscopy (confocal, STED), along with selected examples for quantitative imaging at the cellular level. Correlative imaging that combines different imaging techniques is also demonstrated for selected applications in cell imaging. This chapter serves as a guideline assisting readers from unfamiliar fields of research to obtain reliable imaging at the cellular level while highlighting the strengths, limitations, and potentials of these technologies for cell imaging.