Stem cells are undifferentiated cells that play crucial roles during development, growth and regeneration. Traditionally, these cells have been primarily characterised by histology, cell sorting, cell culture and ex vivo methods. However, as stem cells interact in a complex environment within specific tissue niches, there has been increasing interest in examining their in vivo behaviours, particularly in response to injury. Advances in imaging technologies and genetic tools have converged to enable unprecedented access to the endogenous stem cell niche. In this Spotlight article, we highlight how in vivo imaging can probe a range of biological processes that relate to stem cell activity, behaviour and control.
Footnotes
Funding
The Australian Regenerative Medicine Institute is supported by grants from the State Government of Victoria and the Australian Government. P.D.C. is supported by National Health and Medical Research Council Senior Principal Research Fellowship APP1136567. This work was supported by National Health and Medical Research Council Project Grant APP1104190. P.D.N. is supported by a European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) Long-Term Fellowship (ALTF 1129-2015), European Commission FP7 (Marie Curie Actions, LTFCOFUND2013, GA-2013-609409), a Human Frontier Science Program Long-Term Fellowship (LT001404/2017-L), and a Veni Grant (916.18.017) partly financed by the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek).
