Background and objective: Optical trapping is becoming a useful and widespread technique for the micromanipulation of cells and organelles. Giant cell formation following optical trapping was studied to detect the potential adverse effects.
Study design/materials and methods: The nuclei of preselected single CHO cells were exposed to 740 nm and 760 nm laser microbeam generated by a titanium-sapphire tunable laser at 88 and 176 mW and different time exposures. The irradiated single cells were recorded and observed morphologically following exposure. Giant cells were tabulated and photographed.
Results: The irradiated cells either failed to divide, or they underwent nuclear proliferation to form giant cells through endoreduplication.
Conclusion: Giant cells were induced by both 740 nm and 760 nm. The frequency of giant cell formation was higher for the longer time exposures and at the higher power densities. The use of an optical etalon to remove intracavity mode beating and high peak powers of the titanium-sapphire laser caused a significant reduction in the formation of giant cells.