Structured illumination microscopy, or SIM, offers an alternative to electron microscopy in viewing details that are below the resolution limit of standard light microscopy. SIM was applied recently to analyze renal podocyte substructure in nephrotic kidney disease, and the findings corresponded with those obtained using electron microscopy (Pullman JM, et al. Biomed Opt Express. 2016;7[2]:302–311).

That is important, says lead author James Pullman, MD, PhD, because electron microscopy, or EM, techniques require specially trained technicians and a time-consuming process of preparing, imaging, and analyzing a single sample using EM. SIM also gives protein localization by immunofluorescence the high resolution of EM.

Also in this month’s “Put It on the Board” section. The whole shebang.