David Alsteens

TL;DR: The basic principles, advantages and limitations of the most common AFM bioimaging modes are reviewed, including the popular contact and dynamic modes, as well as recently developed modes such as multiparametric, molecular recognition, multifrequency and high-speed imaging.

TL;DR: How atomic force microscopy can be applied to force probe surfaces of living cells to single-molecule resolution is reviewed to provide unique insight into how cells structurally and functionally modulate the molecules of their surfaces to interact with the cellular environment.

TL;DR: It is demonstrated, both on model surfaces and on living cells, that the receptor binding domain (RBD) serves as the binding interface within the S-glycoprotein with the ACE2 receptor and the kinetic and thermodynamic properties of this binding pocket are extracted.

TL;DR: The potential of combining AFM with complementary techniques, including optical microscopy and spectroscopy of mechanosensitive fluorescent constructs, super-resolution microscopy, the patch clamp technique and the use of microstructured and fluidic devices to characterize the 3D distribution of mechanical responses within biological systems and to track their morphology and functional state as discussed by the authors.

TL;DR: The principles and applications of advanced FD-based AFM tools for the quantitative multiparametric characterization of complex cellular and biomolecular systems under physiological conditions are discussed.