Method for measuring fluorescence correlations in the presence of slow signal fluctuations

1. A method for determining fluorescence correlations in the presence of slow signal fluctuations using a scanning microscope comprises the steps of:

providing a deflection means for coupling in an illuminating light beam,

providing a scanning module for graphical depiction of a specimen on a peripheral device, and at least one detector for photon counting,

aquiring data generated by the detector, the illuminating light beam being positioned, with the scanning module, for a specific time period on a location of the specimen;

directly filtering the acquired data; and

calculating a correlation function, and providing an output that is representative of fluorescence correlations in the presence of slow signal fluctuations.

2. The method as defined in claim 1 , wherein first a Fourier analysis is performed on the acquired data, and then a filtering of the data subject to the Fourier analysis.

3. The method as defined in claim 1 , wherein the filtering step encompasses a short-pass filter that filters slow fluctuations out of the acquired data.

4. The method as defined in claim 1 , wherein the filtering encompasses a long-pass filter that filters out fast fluctuations, corresponding to a lengthening of the sampling time upon recording of the fluorescence signal.

5. The method as defined in claim 4 , wherein the calculated correlation function describes only slow fluctuations whose time range is well above one msec, thus allowing the method to be linked to time-lapse imaging, so that the measured values for the correlation analysis can be used directly from the images acquired with the scanning microscope.

6. The method as defined in claim 5 , wherein the slow fluctuations are used to analyze the dynamics of cell structures.

7. The method as defined in claim 1 , wherein the filtering encompasses a bandpass filter that defines an upper and a lower limit, so that fluctuations below the lower limit and above an upper limit are filtered out.

8. The method as defined in claim 7 , wherein temporary significant deviations of the acquired data beyond a statistically expected amount are automatically detected by setting an upper and a lower threshold, so that those regions are then excised from the acquired data and not used for the correlation analysis.

9. The method as defined in claim 1 , wherein the filtering is performed with a band-blocking filter or notch filter, fluctuations between an upper and a lower limit or around a central frequency are filtered out, so that upon calculation of the correlation function, only the fluctuations of interest below the lower limit and above the upper limit are described.

10. The method as defined in claim 9 , wherein the temporary significant deviations are caused by fluorescing molecular aggregates, or by the attachment of fluorescing molecules to less mobile components of the specimen.

11. The method as defined in claim 1 , wherein an empirical trend curve is used in order to adapt slow fluctuations, in particular drift due to photobleaching.

12. The method as defined in claim 11 , wherein the empirical trend curve is a polynomial or a sum of exponential curves.

13. The method as defined in claim 11 , wherein a scaled difference between the acquired data and the trend curve is calculated, and then contains only the diffusion-related fluctuations of interest that are captured by a correlation analysis.

14. The method as defined in claim 1 , wherein a continuous decrease in the signal resulting from photobleaching, caused by permanently or transiently immobilized molecules, is adapted with the aid of suitable analytical model functions using the scanning microscope, a suitably scaled difference between the adapted model function and the acquired data then containing only the diffusion-related fluctuations of interest.

15. The method as defined in claim 14 , wherein the diffusion-related and binding-related contributions to molecular mobility are simultaneously quantitatively described therefrom.

16. The method as defined in claim 1 , wherein a spot-FRAP experiment is performed with the scanning microscope, the time profile of the increase occurring again in a signal after bleaching being determined by diffusion and by the permanent or transient immobilization of the fluorescent molecules, and being adapted with model functions.

17. The method as defined in claim 1 , wherein the suitably scaled difference between the adapted model function and the acquired data then contains only the diffusion-related fluctuations of interest that are captured by correlation analysis, the diffusion-related and binding-related contributions to molecular mobility being simultaneously quantitatively described.

18. The method as defined in claim 1 , wherein a detected light beam is directed onto a beam splitter provided in a housing, and from there travels to a first and second detection channel.

19. The method as defined in claim 18 , wherein the detected light beam is conveyed by a respective multimode fiber from the first and second detection channel to the at least one avalanche photodiode.

20. The method as defined in claim 18 , wherein an autocorrelation function is calculated from the detected signals generated by the data obtained through the first detection channel and the second detection channel.

21. The method as defined in claim 1 , wherein the detected signals are obtained using at least one avalanche photodiode; and the acquired data are conveyed to a computer that performs the FCS analysis.