Helmholtz Association View Institution's Website 4 articles published in JoVE Immunology and Infection Flow Cytometric Isolation of Primary Murine Type II Alveolar Epithelial Cells for Functional and Molecular Studies Marcus Gereke1,2, Andrea Autengruber1,2, Lothar Gröbe3, Andreas Jeron2, Dunja Bruder1,2, Sabine Stegemann-Koniszewski1 1Research Group Immune Regulation, Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, 2Research Group Infection Immunology, Institute of Medical Microbiology, Otto-von-Guericke University, 3Department of Experimental Immunology, Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research We describe the rapid isolation of primary murine type II alveolar epithelial cells (AECII) by flow cytometric negative selection. These AECII show high viability and purity and are suitable for a wide range of functional and molecular studies regarding their role in respiratory conditions such as autoimmune or infectious diseases. Medicine The Use of Primary Human Fibroblasts for Monitoring Mitochondrial Phenotypes in the Field of Parkinson's Disease Lena F. Burbulla1,2, Rejko Krüger1,2 1German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases, DZNE, 2Laboratory of Functional Neurogenomics, Department of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research, University of Tübingen Fibroblasts from patients carrying mutations in Parkinson's disease-causing genes represent an easily accessible ex vivo model to study disease-associated phenotypes. Live cell imaging gives the opportunity to study morphological and functional parameters in living cells. Here we describe the preparation of human fibroblasts and subsequent monitoring of mitochondrial phenotypes. Medicine In vivo Near Infrared Fluorescence (NIRF) Intravascular Molecular Imaging of Inflammatory Plaque, a Multimodal Approach to Imaging of Atherosclerosis Marcella A. Calfon1, Amir Rosenthal1,2, Georgios Mallas1,3, Adam Mauskapf1, R. Nika Nudelman2, Vasilis Ntziachristos2, Farouc A. Jaffer1 1Cardiovascular Research Center and Cardiology Division, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 2Institute for Biological and Medical Imaging, Helmholtz Zentrum München und Technische Universität München, 3Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Northeastern University We detail a new near-infrared fluorescence (NIRF) catheter for 2-dimensional intravascular molecular imaging of plaque biology in vivo. The NIRF catheter can visualize key biological processes such as inflammation by reporting on the presence of plaque-avid activatable and targeted NIR fluorochromes. The catheter utilizes clinical engineering and power requirements and is targeted for application in human coronary arteries. The following research study describes a multimodal imaging strategy that utilizes a novel in vivo intravascular NIRF catheter to image and quantify inflammatory plaque in proteolytically active inflamed rabbit atheromata. Immunology and Infection Direct Observation of Phagocytosis and NET-formation by Neutrophils in Infected Lungs using 2-photon Microscopy Mike Hasenberg1, Anja Köhler1, Susanne Bonifatius1, Andreas Jeron2, Matthias Gunzer1 1Institute for Molecular and Clinical Immunology, Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg, 2Department of Immunoregulation, Helmholtz Center for Infection Research We show, how to use 2-photon microscopy for the observation of the dynamics of neutrophil granulocytes in infected lungs while they phagocytose pathogens or produce neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs).