Visualization of internal 3D structure of small live seed on germination by laboratory-based X-ray microscopy with phase contrast computed tomography

Abstract

The visualization of internal 3D-structure of tissues at micron resolutions without staining by contrast reagents is desirable in plant researches, and it can be achieved by an X-ray computed tomography (CT) with a phase-retrieval technique. Recently, a laboratory-based X-ray microscope adopting the phase contrast CT was developed as a powerful tool for the observation of weakly absorbing biological samples. Here we report the observation of unstained pansy seeds using the laboratory-based X-ray phase-contrast CT.The visualization of internal 3D-structure of tissues at micron resolutions without staining by contrast reagents is desirable in plant researches, and it can be achieved by an X-ray computed tomography (CT) with a phase-retrieval technique. Recently, a laboratory-based X-ray microscope adopting the phase contrast CT was developed as a powerful tool for the observation of weakly absorbing biological samples. Here we report the observation of unstained pansy seeds using the laboratory-based X-ray phase-contrast CT.