Mouse Smooth Muscle Tissue - 40x
Shown above is a three-dimensional reconstruction of mouse smooth muscle tissue stained with Alexa Fluor 350 (wheat germ agglutinin; lectins), Alexa Fluor 568 (phalloidin; actin), and SYTOX Green (nuclei). Although there have been many strides forward in understanding smooth muscle and the details of its physiology, there remains a great deal to be learned. Studies of animal models, especially rodents, play a large part in modern investigations of smooth muscle and other tissues. Some recent studies involving mouse smooth muscle tissue have focused on oxidative responses of cells, intracellular calcium mobilization, mapping of the calponin gene, and the expression of myosin heavy chain isoforms.