Cell Stiffness and ROS Level Alterations in Living Neurons Mediated by Β-Amyloid Oligomers Measured by Scanning Ion-Conductance Microscopy.

Scanning ion-conductance microscopy (SICM) is a scanning probe microscopy technique with nanoscale resolution which allows for the surface topography investigation of nanoscale structures such as living cells in conditions close to physiological (Korchev et al., 1997). Apart from topography visualization, SICM can be used to estimate cell stiffness, which is based on elastic deformation due to colloidal pressure between nanopipette tip and cell surface, and to measure distribution of reactive oxygen species (ROS) concentration in cell.