Confocal Imaging of the Microtubule Cytoskeleton in C. elegans Embryos and Germ Cells

The microtubule cytoskeleton plays important roles in a number of cellular processes including cell division, establishing and maintaining cell architecture and polarity, and intracellular trafficking. The identification and characterization of factors required for the proper functioning of the microtubule cytoskeleton have been aided by approaches that combine sensitive and rapid methods for high-resolution optical imaging, such as confocal microscopy, with the powerful genetics available in model organisms. Here we present methods for confocal imaging of live and fixed tissues of the nematode C. elegans , a model organism that has been employed with great success to study the microtubule cytoskeleton and its roles in cell division and cell polarity.