Acquisition of a Laser Scanning Confocal Microscope for Natural Science Research and Teaching

购置激光扫描共焦显微镜用于自然科学研究和教学

• 批准号: 0215847
• 负责人: Steven Runge
• 金额: $ 22.52万
• 依托单位: University of Central Arkansas
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2002
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2002-06-01 至 2006-05-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0215847&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Acquisition; Laser; Scanning; Confocal; Microscope

AbstractA grant has been awarded to Dr. Steven W. Runge and colleagues at the University of Central Arkansas (UCA) to obtain a Laser Scanning Confocal Microscope (LSCM). This instrument has the ability to capture images of cells and cellular structures that are tagged with fluorescent markers with a resolution unmatched by other types of light microscopy. The ability of the LSCM to acquire optical sections and construct 3-D images from a variety of live and prepared tissues and to perform time-course analyses on living cells and tissues will impact a wide range of research programs at UCA. Investigations that will employ the LSCM range from 3-D reconstruction of complex tissues such as actively growing plant shoots and brains of rats and marine snails to tracking the movement of structures inside of cultured cells and native tissues. Collectively, acquisition of this instrument will elevate faculty and student research at UCA to new levels of sophistication. This will allow researchers to address questions that previously were inaccessible. A significant benefit of having this work conducted at UCA, rather than at distant institutions, will be the heightened opportunities for our undergraduates to become involved in research. Our graduate students (master's level) will also acquire important experience and skills that will promote future research and professional study.The LSCM will be used to address a wide variety of research questions in the natural sciences. These include: the rapid assay and localization of plant pigments involved in responses to UV-light; morphological characterization of neurons in the white matter of mammalian brains; tracking the exocytic insertion of potassium channels into intestinal membranes for osmoregulation in marine gastropods; visualization of synaptic connections involved in behavioral decisions in whole brains of marine gastropods; understanding mechanisms that underlie the selective death of Purkinje cells during maturation of the rat cerebellum; tracking the movement of developmental signals that direct inflorescence architecture in flowering plants; examination of secretory canals in plants and the effects of trenching insects on latex/oil distribution; and ratio imaging to monitor intracellular pH and time-course imaging of vesicular trafficking of Na+/H+ exchangers in cultured cells undergoing apoptosis. Methodologies to be employed include visualization of autofluorescent molecules and structures in plant tissues, tagging stuctures with fluorescent antibodies, filling individual brain cells with fluorescent molecules to identify connections to other cells, and labeling cell-surface proteins with fluorescent markers to follow the movement of these proteins to and from the cell surface under different conditions.In addition to research, the LSCM will be a valuable addition to science instruction at UCA. Confocal microscopy will help students visualize complex 3-D processes in biology and make measurements on living cells that will be invaluable assets to teaching. For instance, stages of frog embryo development will be recorded as a set of 3-D, time-course images that trace this dynamic process. These images will then be made available for analysis in the classroom. The stunning images produced by LSCM will also be used to generate interest in the sciences among high school students and teachers through various outreach programs and the Arkansas education media centered here on the UCA campus. The University's enrollment of about 8,500 students is 62% female and 19% minority, with the later group steadily increasing in proportion over the last decade. Acquisition of the LSCM will strengthen faculty research capabilities, support strong undergraduate research programs, attract more women and minority students to careers in the sciences, increase public appreciation of science, and support programs in a historically under-supported geographic area.

中阿肯色大学（UCA）的Steven W. Runge博士及其同事获得了激光扫描共聚焦显微镜（LSCM）的资助。该仪器能够捕捉细胞和细胞结构的图像，这些图像带有荧光标记，其分辨率是其他类型的光学显微镜无法比拟的。LSCM能够从各种活的和制备的组织中获取光学切片和构建三维图像，并对活细胞和组织进行时间过程分析，这将影响加州大学洛杉矶分校的广泛研究项目。将使用LSCM的研究范围从三维重建复杂组织，如积极生长的植物芽和老鼠和海蜗牛的大脑，到跟踪培养细胞和天然组织内部结构的运动。总的来说，这台仪器的收购将把UCA的教师和学生的研究提升到一个新的复杂水平。这将使研究人员能够解决以前无法解决的问题。在加州大学洛杉矶分校而不是在遥远的机构进行这项工作的一个显著好处是，我们的本科生有更多的机会参与研究。我们的研究生（硕士水平）也将获得重要的经验和技能，这将促进未来的研究和专业学习。LSCM将用于解决自然科学中各种各样的研究问题。这些包括：快速测定和定位植物色素参与对紫外线的反应；哺乳动物脑白质神经元的形态学特征海洋腹足类动物肠膜钾离子通道胞外插入的渗透调节海洋腹足动物全脑行为决策相关突触连接的可视化研究了解大鼠小脑成熟过程中浦肯野细胞选择性死亡的机制；跟踪指导开花植物花序结构的发育信号的运动；植物分泌管的检查及沟虫对乳胶/油脂分布的影响以及比值成像监测细胞内pH值和Na+/H+交换剂在凋亡培养细胞中囊泡运输的时间过程成像。将采用的方法包括可视化植物组织中的自荧光分子和结构，用荧光抗体标记结构，用荧光分子填充单个脑细胞以识别与其他细胞的连接，以及用荧光标记标记细胞表面蛋白质以跟踪这些蛋白质在不同条件下进出细胞表面的运动。除了研究之外，LSCM将成为加州大学洛杉矶分校科学教学的宝贵补充。共聚焦显微镜将帮助学生可视化生物学中复杂的三维过程，并对活细胞进行测量，这将是教学的宝贵资产。例如，青蛙胚胎发育的各个阶段将被记录为一组追踪这一动态过程的3-D时间过程图像。这些图像将在课堂上用于分析。LSCM制作的令人惊叹的图像也将通过各种外展项目和以UCA校园为中心的阿肯色州教育媒体，用于激发高中学生和教师对科学的兴趣。该大学约有8,500名学生，其中女性占62%，少数族裔占19%，在过去十年中，少数族裔的比例稳步上升。收购LSCM将加强教师的研究能力，支持强大的本科研究项目，吸引更多的女性和少数民族学生从事科学事业，提高公众对科学的认识，并支持历史上缺乏支持的地理区域的项目。