AUTHOR=Romanova Daria Y. , Frank Yana A. , Moroz Leonid L. 

TITLE=Expansion microscopy in Placozoa: improving resolution and preservation of fragile samples during marine expedition

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Marine Science

VOLUME=Volume 12 - 2025

YEAR=2025

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/marine-science/articles/10.3389/fmars.2025.1531729

DOI=10.3389/fmars.2025.1531729

ISSN=2296-7745

ABSTRACT=Placozoa are small disc-shaped animals representing one of the early branching metazoan lineages with only a dozen cell types, fast effector reactions, and complex behaviors. The simplest organization and small cell sizes limit standard microscopy applications. Here, we implement a new methodology and protocol for expansion microscopy, improving both the resolution and preservation of fragile placozoans and kin. As a result, the proposed approaches can be applicable to a diversity of microscopic animals and their larvae with broad applicability for both laboratory and cross-disciplinary field research during long-term marine expeditions.