Live cell imaging at the Munich ion microbeam SNAKE - a status report

Ion microbeams are important tools in radiobiological research.
Still, the worldwide number of ion microbeam facilities where
biological experiments can be performed is limited. Even fewer
facilities combine ion microirradiation with live-cell imaging to
allow microscopic observation of cellular response reactions
starting very fast after irradiation and continuing for many hours.
At SNAKE, the ion microbeam facility at the Munich 14 MV tandem
accelerator, a large variety of biological experiments are
performed on a regular basis. Here, recent developments and ongoing
research projects at the ion microbeam SNAKE are presented with
specific emphasis on live-cell imaging experiments. An overview of
the technical details of the setup is given, including examples of
suitable biological samples. By ion beam focusing to submicrometer
beam spot size and single ion detection it is possible to target
subcellular structures with defined numbers of ions. Focusing of
high numbers of ions to single spots allows studying the influence
of high local damage density on recruitment of damage response
proteins.