Changing the Way We Look at Cells

Most imaging methods destroy their cell culture samples in order to take their measurements, rendering live biological parameters impossible to assess over time. For the first time, CytoTronics has developed real-time, nondestructive electrochemical imaging, making it possible to measure not only cell movement and shapes, but also how cells are connected together and their electrophysiological properties such as nerve cell signaling and metabolic activity. This will revolutionize the study of how cells behave, and already has applications in drug development, wound healing neurology, gastrointestinal studies and more.

Creating a scientific animation to tell this story required combining cell biology and cultures with slick, high-tech imagery to describe the physical principles involved. Colors reminiscent of early lightbulbs evoke a sense of the newness of this technology, while prismatic spatial disturbances helped to define the electromagnetic fields the technology uses to achieve its results.