Cell Culture

Cell Culture Dishes for Microbeam Irradiation

Cell culture irradiations are the primary form of microbeam irradiations that are performed at RARAF. The cells are plated on a modified culture dish where a 1/4" hole has been drilled in the center to act as a culture well. The bottom of the well is covered with 3-micron polypropylene film where the cells are plated. This thin polypropylene allows the chosen radiation to get through to the cells while allowing them to be placed upright on the microbeam end stations with minimal distance between the dish bottom and beam exit window.

We have drafted instruction sheets on preparing microbeam dishes and plating cells for microbeam irradiation.

A list of cell lines that have been previously used for microbeam irradiation is available here.

The dish making and handling procedures have been demonstrated in a video for our Microbeam Training Course.

The dishes provide a stable base on which the cells can be plated and maintained throughout the microbeam irradiations. The cells are primarily imaged through fluorescent staining with Hoechst 33342 DNA binding vital stain to target nuclei to be hit or not hit with the irradiation. Labeling of multiple parts of cells for irradiation and/or observation is also available. A picture of multi-color stained cells in culture is shown here. Other imaging modalities are available if desired and are discussed on the Microbeam Online Imaging page.