The cerebellum is a prominent part of the vertebrate hindbrain that is critically involved in the regulation of important body functions such as movement coordination, maintenance of balance and posture, and motor control. Here, we describe a cerebellar window that provides access to the mouse cerebellum for intravital imaging, thereby allowing for a detailed characterization of the dynamic processes in this region of the brain. First, the skull overlying the cerebellum is removed, and then the window is applied to the region of interest. Windows may be exchanged depending on the desired imaging modality. This technique has a variety of applications. In the setting of medulloblastoma, spontaneous or orthotopically implanted lesions can be imaged, and tumor morphology and size can be monitored using ultrasonography. Multiphoton laser-scanning microscopy (MPLSM) or optical-frequency-domain imaging (OFDI) can be applied for in vivo visualization and analysis of cellular and vascular structures in a variety of disease states, including malignancies and ataxia telangiectasia. This protocol describes a novel and rapid method for cerebellar window construction that can be set up in under an hour.

中文翻译：

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小脑窗口，用于小鼠体内正常和疾病状态的活体成像。

小脑是脊椎动物后脑的重要部分，主要参与重要身体功能的调节，例如运动协调，维持平衡和姿势以及运动控制。在这里，我们描述了一个小脑窗口，该窗口提供了对小鼠小脑的活体成像的访问，从而可以详细描述大脑这一区域的动态过程。首先，去除小脑上方的头骨，然后将窗口应用于目标区域。可以根据所需的成像方式更换窗户。该技术具有多种应用。在髓母细胞瘤的情况下，可以对自发性或原位植入的病变进行成像，并可以使用超声检查来监测肿瘤的形态和大小。多光子激光扫描显微镜（MPLSM）或光频域成像（OFDI）可用于体内可视化和分析各种疾病状态下的细胞和血管结构，包括恶性肿瘤和共济失调毛细血管扩张。该协议描述了一种新的快速的小脑窗构造方法，可以在一个小时内完成设置。