Active Remote Focus Stabilization in Oblique Plane Microscopy

Light-sheet fluorescence microscopy (LSFM) has demonstrated great potential in the life sciences owing to its efficient volumetric imaging capabilities. For long-term imaging, the light-sheet typically needs to be stabilized to the detection focal plane for the best imaging results. Current light-sheet stabilization methods rely on fluorescence emission from the sample, which may interrupt scientific imaging and add to sample photobleaching. Here, we show that for oblique plane microscopes (OPM), a subset of LSFM where a single primary objective is used for illumination and detection, light-sheet stabilization can be achieved without expending sample fluorescence. Our method achieves ∼21 nm axial precision and maintains the light-sheet well within the depth of focus of the detection system for hour-long acquisition runs in a lab environment that would otherwise detune the system. We demonstrate subcellular imaging of the actin skeleton in melanoma cancer cells with a stabilized OPM.