Optical Clearing and Labeling for Light-sheet Fluorescence Microscopy in Large-scale Human Brain Imaging
Summary
The present protocol provides a step-by-step procedure for rapid and simultaneous optical clearing, muti-round labeling, and 3D volumetric reconstruction of tens of postmortem human brain sections by combining the (SWITCH – H2O2 – Antigen Retrieval – 2,2′-thiodiethanol [TDE]) SHORT tissue transformation technique with light-sheet fluorescence microscopy imaging in a routinely high-throughput protocol.
Abstract
Despite the numerous clearing techniques that emerged in the last decade, processing postmortem human brains remains a challenging task due to its dimensions and complexity, which make imaging with micrometer resolution particularly difficult. This paper presents a protocol to perform the reconstruction of volumetric portions of the human brain by simultaneously processing tens of sections with the SHORT (SWITCH – H2O2 – Antigen Retrieval – 2,2′-thiodiethanol [TDE]) tissue transformation protocol, which enables clearing, labeling, and sequential imaging of the samples with light-sheet fluorescence microscopy (LSFM). SHORT provides rapid tissue clearing and homogeneous multi-labeling of thick slices with several neuronal markers, enabling the identification of different neuronal subpopulations in both white and grey matter. After clearing, the slices are imaged via LSFM with micrometer resolution and in multiple channels simultaneously for a rapid 3D reconstruction. By combining SHORT with LSFM analysis within a routinely high-throughput protocol, it is possible to obtain the 3D cytoarchitecture reconstruction of large volumetric areas at high resolution in a short time, thus enabling comprehensive structural characterization of the human brain.
Introduction
Analyzing the 3D molecular organization and cytoarchitecture of large volumes of the human brain requires optical transparency of specimens, achieved through protocols with extensive processing time. Optical clearing techniques were developed to minimize heterogeneity in refractive index (RI) within the tissues, thereby reducing light scattering and increasing the light penetration depth for high-resolution imaging1,2,3,4,5. Current advances in clearing and deep tissue-labeling methods allow volumetric imaging of intact rodent organs and embryos by exploiting cutting-edge microscopy techniques6,7,8,9,10,11,12.
However, volumetric 3D reconstruction of large areas of the postmortem human brain still represents a challenging task compared with model organisms. The complex biological composition and the variable postmortem fixation and storage conditions can compromise the tissue clearing efficiency, the antibody penetration depth, and the epitope recognition13,14,15,16,17,18,19. Moreover, mechanical tissue sectioning and subsequent clearing and labeling of each slice is still required to achieve an efficient clearing and uniform labeling of large human brain areas, resulting in long processing times and the need for sophisticated custom equipment, compared with model organisms15,20,21,22.
The SWITCH – H2O2 – antigen Retrieval –TDE (SHORT) tissue transformation technique has been developed specifically to analyze large volumes of the human brain18,23. This method employs the tissue structural preservation of the SWITCH protocol11 and high concentrations of peroxide hydrogen to decrease tissue autofluorescence, in combination with epitope restoration. SHORT allows uniform staining of human brain slices with markers for different neuronal subtypes, glial cells, vasculature, and myelinated fibers18,24. Its results are compatible with the analysis of both low- and high-density proteins. The resulting high transparency levels and uniform labeling enable volumetric reconstruction of thick slices with fluorescence microscopy, in particular, for fast acquisition light-sheet apparatus can be used18,24,25,26,27.
In this work, we describe how the SHORT tissue transformation technique can be used for simultaneous clearing and multi-round labeling of tens of formalin-fixed human brain sections. Four different fluorescent markers can be used together, leading to the identification of different cellular sub-populations. After clearing, high-resolution volumetric imaging can be performed with fluorescence microscopy. Here, we used a custom-made inverted LSFM18,24,25,26,27, which enables fast optical sectioning of the sample and rapid acquisition of multiple channels in parallel. With this routinely high-throughput protocol, it is possible to obtain a comprehensive cellular and structural characterization with a sub-cellular resolution of large areas of the human brain as already demonstrated in the mapping of an entire Broca's area23.
Protocol
Representative Results
Discussion
High-resolution imaging and 3D reconstruction of large human brain areas require mechanical tissue sectioning followed by optical clearing and immunolabeling of single slices. The protocol presented here describes how the SHORT tissue transformation method can be used for rapid and simultaneous processing of multiple human brain thick sections for 3D brain reconstruction with a subcellular resolution with LSFM.
Unlike other approaches, with the SHORT method the clearing and multi-labeling step…
Disclosures
The authors have nothing to disclose.
Acknowledgements
We thank Bruce Fischl, Massachusetts General Hospital, A.A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, for providing the human brain specimens analyzed in this study. This project received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Framework Programme under grant agreement No. 654148 (Laserlab-Europe), from the European Union's Horizon 2020 Framework Programme for Research and Innovation under the Specific Grant Agreement No. 785907 (Human Brain Project SGA2) and No. 945539 (Human Brain Project SGA3), from the General Hospital Corporation Center of the National Institutes of Health under award number U01 MH117023, and from the Italian Ministry for Education in the framework of Euro-Bioimaging Italian Node (ESFRI research infrastructure). Finally, this research was carried out with the contribution of "Fondazione CR Firenze." The content of this work is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health. Figure 1 was created with BioRender.com.
Materials
| 2,2'-thiodiethanol | Merck Life Science S.R.L. | 166782 | |
| Acetamide >= 99.0% (GC) | Merck Life Science S.R.L. | 160 | |
| Agarose High EEO | Merck Life Science S.R.L. | A9793 | |
| Boric Acid | Merck Life Science S.R.L. | B7901 | |
| Compressome VF-900-0Z Microtome | Precisionary | / | |
| Coverslips | LaserOptex | / | customized |
| Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid disodium salt dihydrate | Merck Life Science S.R.L. | E5134 | |
| Glutaraldehyde | Merck Life Science S.R.L. | G7651 | |
| Glycine | Santa Cruz Biotechnology | SC_29096 | |
| Hydrogen Peroxide 30% | Merck Life Science S.R.L. | ||
| Incubator ISS-4075 | Lab companion | / | |
| Light-sheet fluorescence microscopy (LSFM) | / | / | custom-made |
| Loctite Attak | Henkel Italia srl | / | |
| Microscope slides | Laborchimica | / | customized |
| Phospate buffer saline tablet | Merck Life Science S.R.L. | P4417 | |
| Picodent Twinsil | Picodent | 13005002 | out of production |
| Potassium Hydrogen Phtalate | Merck Life Science S.R.L. | P1088 | |
| Sodium Azide | Merck Life Science S.R.L. | S2002 | |
| Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate | Merck Life Science S.R.L. | L3771 | |
| Sodium Sulfite | Merck Life Science S.R.L. | S0505 | |
| Spacers | Microlaser srl | customized | |
| Sputum Containers (dishes with screw lids) | Paul Boettger GmbH & Co. KG | 07.061.2000 | |
| Tris Base | PanReac AppliChem (ITW reagents) | A4577,0500 | |
| Triton X-100 | Merck Life Science S.R.L. | T8787 | |
| Tubes | Sarstedt | 62 547254 | |
| Tween 20 | Merck Life Science S.R.L. | P9416 | |
| Vibratome VT1000S | Leica Biosystem | / | |
| Water bath | Memmert | WNB 7-45 | |
| Antibodies and Dyes | |||
| Alexa Fluor 488 AffiniPure Alpaca Anti-Rabbit IgG (H+L) | Jackson Immuno Reasearch | 611-545-215 | Dilution used, 1:200 |
| Alexa Fluor 488 AffiniPure Bovine Anti-Goat IgG (H+L) | Jackson Immuno Reasearch | 805-545-180 | Dilution used, 1:200 |
| Alexa Fluor 647 AffiniPure Alpaca Anti-Rabbit IgG (H+L) | Jackson Immuno Reasearch | 611-605-215 | Dilution used, 1:200 |
| Anti-NeuN Antibody | Merck Life Science S.R.L. | ABN91 | Dilution used, 1:100 |
| Anti-Parvalbumin antibody (PV) | Abcam | ab32895 | Dilution used, 1:200 |
| Anti-Vimentin antibody [V9] – Cytoskeleton Marker (VIM) | Abcam | ab8069 | Dilution used, 1:200 |
| Calretinin Polyclonal antibody | ProteinTech | 12278_1_AP | Dilution used, 1:200 |
| DAPI | ThermoFisher | D3571 | Dilution used, 1:100 |
| Donkey Anti-Mouse IgG H&L (Alexa Fluor 568) | Abcam | ab175700 | Dilution used, 1:200 |
| Donkey Anti-Mouse IgG H&L (Alexa Fluor 647) | Abcam | ab150107 | Dilution used, 1:200 |
| Donkey Anti-Rabbit IgG H&L (Alexa Fluor 568) | Abcam | ab175470 | Dilution used, 1:200 |
| Donkey Anti-Rat IgG H&L (Alexa Fluor 568) preadsorbed | Abcam | ab175475 | Dilution used, 1:200 |
| Goat Anti-Chicken IgY H&L (Alexa Fluor 488) | Abcam | ab150169 | Dilution used, 1:500 |
| Goat Anti-Chicken IgY H&L (Alexa Fluor 568) | Abcam | ab175711 | Dilution used, 1:500 |
| Goat Anti-Chicken IgY H&L (Alexa Fluor 647) | Abcam | ab150171 | Dilution used, 1:500 |
| Goat Anti-Rabbit IgG H&L (Alexa Fluor 488) | Abcam | ab150077 | Dilution used, 1:200 |
| Recombinant Alexa Fluor 488 Anti-GFAP antibody | Abcam | ab194324 | Dilution used, 1:200 |
| Somatostatin Antibody YC7 | Santa Cruz Biotechnology | sc-47706 | Dilution used, 1:200 |
| Vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) | ProteinTech | 16233-1-AP | Dilution used, 1:200 |
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