High-throughput in-flow imaging of intact organoids and tissue (mimics) with cellular resolution
Commonly used acronym: INFLUXO
Scope of the method
The Method relates to
- Animal health
- Human health
The Method is situated in
- Basic Research
- Regulatory use - Routine production
Type of method
- In vitro - Ex vivo
This method makes use of
- Human derived cells / tissues / organs
Specify the type of cells/tissues/organs
iPSC-derived organoids and assembloids, patient-derived tumoroids and cuboids
Description
Method keywords
- cerebral organoids
- organoids
- light sheet imaging
- High-throughput screening
- high-content image analysis
- fluorescence microscope
Scientific area keywords
- neuroscience
- cancer
- Developmental biology
- drug delivery
- drug screening
- cell biology
Method description
Modern cell and developmental biology increasingly rely on 3D cell systems such as organoids. However, the inability to characterize these specimens at the cellular level with high throughput hampers
their integration in routine screening settings. To address this bottleneck, we have developed a module for imaging organoids and tissue (mimics) in flow, based on a transparent agarose fluidic chip that enables efficient and consistent 3D recordings with theoretically unlimited throughput. Downstream high-content image analysis enables absolute quantification with cellular resolution. By design, the platform offers a cost-effective, accessible, and efficient solution for fast and absolute 3D histopathology on essentially any microscope.
Lab equipment
Light sheet microscope or confocal microscope
Method status
- Still in development
- Internally validated
- Published in peer reviewed journal
Pros, cons & Future potential
Advantages
- 1. Non-invasive and absolute organ(oid) imaging;
- 2. Virtually unlimited throughput with gentle sample handling;
- 3. Not limited by sample size or microscope setup;
- 4. Simple control and design flexibility guarantee wide applicability.
Challenges
Thicker samples demand clearing for full-depth characterization.
Future & Other applications
Easily extendible to other 3D samples such as biofabricated constructs and patient-derived biopsies for comprehensive characterization of cell composition and organisation enabling true 3D histopathology
References, associated documents and other information
References
De Beuckeleer et al., 2025. An agarose fluidic chip for high-throughput in toto organoid imaging (DOI: 10.1039/D4LC00459K)
Van De Looverbosch et al., 2025. Proximity adjusted centroid mapping for accurate detection of nuclei in dense 3D cell systems (DOI: 10.1016/j.compbiomed.2024.109561)
Associated documents
2025 De Beuckeleer Lab Chip.pdf
Links
An agarose fluidic chip for high-throughput in toto organoid imaging
Contact person
Winnok De VosOrganisations
University of Antwerp (UAntwerpen)Veterinary Sciences
Belgium
Flemish Region