A routine blood sample contains a diverse collection of immune cells that can provide clues about health and disease. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells, or PBMCs, are widely used in research on infections, autoimmune disorders, cancer and the immune system's response to treatment.
Scientists typically identify these cells using fluorescent labels attached to specific surface markers. However, those methods provide limited information about how the cells are functioning and can alter the cells during preparation.
A recent study reported in Biophotonics Discovery shows how advanced optical imaging can reveal previously inaccessible information: the metabolic activity of individual immune cells within a complex blood sample.
