Imaging liquid crystalline mesophases in living organisms

The authors now have a technique that optimizes the detection of small birefringences, enabling them to obtain high resolution and high contrast coloured images of entire, living, moving organisms. The technique depends on visualizing dynamically coherent liquid crystalline mesophases in the tissues. It involves viewing the organism between crossed polars with an asymmetrically placed compensatory full wave-plate-about 7.5 degrees from either polarizer when brilliant colours are generated in all living tissues and organisms, whereas, little or no colour is generated when the wave-plate is at its usual position of 45 degrees between the crossed polars. Another innovation in the authors' technique is that they can differentially illuminate various internal organs and tissues by adjusting the level of the condenser.<
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