Final answer:
Confocal laser scanning microscopy can image living tissues in awake, behaving animals, thanks to advanced imaging techniques involving fluorescent dyes and laser scanning which allows for three-dimensional visualization of live specimens.
Step-by-step explanation:
Confocal laser scanning microscopy is indeed capable of imaging living tissue in awake and behaving animals. Confocal microscopes use a laser to scan multiple z-planes to produce high-resolution two-dimensional images at various depths, creating a three-dimensional image. The use of a narrow aperture, or pinhole, helps to eliminate any light not from the target z-plane, thereby enhancing image clarity. Fluorescent dyes are typically used to increase contrast and allow for the visualization of biological structures within live specimens. Advanced techniques such as two-photon microscopy, a variant of confocal microscopy using long-wavelength light, further enable researchers to visualize living cells within thick tissues and organisms with reduced damage due to lower energy light. This suitability for live specimens makes confocal microscopy a popular choice in medical and biological research for observing living organisms and processes at a cellular level in real-time.