Shine a light: imaging the immune system.

Intra vital microscopy and whole-body imaging promise to revolutionize how we study the immune system. They compel by the intrinsic beauty of the images obtained and the undeniable direct biological relevance of the observations. However, it is important to remember that in many cases, fundamental insights into the underlying biological processes have already been obtained using ex vivo reductionist approaches. Indeed, it is likely that with the advent of microfluidics, new and exciting avenues will open up for ex vivo experimentation. Here, we give a brief but comprehensive overview of the various imaging techniques available, their relative strengths and shortcomings and how these tools have been used to get us to where we are today. The challenge for the future will be to apply the most suitable technology and to integrate the findings across various imaging disciplines to build a unified, comprehensive "big picture" of the immune system.