Acquisition of a Laser Scanning Confocal Microscope for Enhancing Undergraduate Research and Training across the Sciences at Washington & Lee University and Virginia Military I

购买激光扫描共焦显微镜，以加强华盛顿大学本科生的跨学科研究和培训

• 批准号: 1126118
• 负责人: Fiona Watson
• 金额: $ 36.57万
• 依托单位: Washington and Lee University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2011
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2011-09-01 至 2014-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1126118&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Acquisition; Laser; Scanning; Confocal; Microscope

With this award from the Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) program, Drs. Watson, LaRiviere, Stewart, Erickson, Turner and ten colleagues from the Departments of Biology, Psychology, Physics and Engineering, and Computer Science, along with the Programs in Neuroscience, Biochemistry, and Environmental Sciences at Washington and Lee University (W&L), Virginia Military Institute (VMI) and Mary Baldwin College (MBC) will acquire an Olympus Fluoview 1000 (FV1000) Spectral Confocal Live Cell System for research and training across the sciences. This confocal laser scanning microscope (CLSM) will form the foundation of the newly created communal microscopy, imaging, and computational core of a projected Interdisciplinary Quantitative Science Center that is part of a long-range, grant-funded initiative at W&L which promotes mathematical modeling, bioinformatics, and data analysis. The confocal microscope will enable fifteen researchers from three schools to expand their ability to detect, quantify, and localize gene products and to study biological structures, thereby expanding the scope of existing research agendas and developing new as well as collaborative research opportunities. Specifically, the confocal microscope will facilitate and impact the following areas: 1) the study of different aspects of synaptic connectivity and influences on neuronal wiring in the brain and central nervous system, 2) eukaryotic nonfunctional ribosomal RNA decay pathways, 3) effects of hormone regulation in the developing cardiovascular system and sexual differentiation, 4) mechanism of Ca++ regulation, 5) reconstruction of glandular morphology of terrestrial invertebrates, 6) ultrastructural analysis of single-celled eukaryotes, 7) rapid assessment of otolith structure in new fish species, 8) comparison of the formation of dense core secretory granules cells, 9) localization of nitrogen-cycling microorganisms on freshly harvested fine roots and organic matter and 10) image segmentation and analysis studies. Confocal microscopy is a technique that allows a three dimensional high resolution image acquisition of live or fixed specimens. By attaching fluorescent dyes (fluorophores) to biological specimens, cells and sub-cellular components can be identified with a high degree of specificity amid non-fluorescing material. Moreover, several target molecules can be visualized simultaneously with multiple fluorophores emitting light at differing wavelengths. Using image analysis software, the acquired serial optical sections are then rendered to generate a clean high resolution three-dimensional reconstruction of the specimen in which all out-of-focus light has been rejected. The result is an exceptionally clean high resolution image of a biological specimen that can reveal the presence of a single molecule. This instrument is critical for the study of biological structures and will have a transformative effect on how emergent young scientists are trained at W&L, VMI, and MBC. The CLSM will provide cutting edge tools for faculty to carry out their research projects and provide microscopy training and research opportunities to undergraduate students from three rural primarily undergraduate institutions. Using the teacher-scholar model, which seamlessly integrates research with discovery-based laboratory course work, W&L and VMI, will take full advantage of this instrumentation to promote further research integration into courses, to expand undergraduate programmatic research opportunities, and to promote student and faculty collaborations within and between departments and institutions.

凭借主要研究仪器 (MRI) 计划的这一奖项，博士。 Watson、LaRiviere、Stewart、Erickson、Turner 和来自生物系、心理学系、物理与工程系、计算机科学系以及华盛顿与李大学 (W&L)、弗吉尼亚军事学院 (VMI) 和玛丽鲍德温学院 (MBC) 神经科学、生物化学和环境科学项目的 10 名同事将购买一台奥林巴斯 Fluoview 1000 (FV1000) 光谱共焦活细胞系统，用于跨科学的研究和培训。这款共焦激光扫描显微镜 (CLSM) 将构成跨学科定量科学中心新创建的公共显微镜、成像和计算核心的基础，该中心是 W&L 长期资助计划的一部分，该计划旨在促进数学建模、生物信息学和数据分析。共焦显微镜将使来自三所学校的十五名研究人员能够扩大他们检测、量化和定位基因产物以及研究生物结构的能力，从而扩大现有研究议程的范围并开发新的合作研究机会。具体来说，共聚焦显微镜将促进和影响以下领域：1）研究突触连接的不同方面以及对大脑和中枢神经系统神经元接线的影响，2）真核非功能性核糖体RNA衰减途径，3）激素调节对发育中心血管系统和性分化的影响，4）Ca++调节机制，5）腺体重建 陆生无脊椎动物的形态学，6）单细胞真核生物的超微结构分析，7）新鱼类耳石结构的快速评估，8）致密核心分泌颗粒细胞形成的比较，9）氮循环微生物在新收获的细根和有机质上的定位以及10）图像分割和分析研究。共焦显微镜是一种可以对活体或固定样本进行三维高分辨率图像采集的技术。通过将荧光染料（荧光团）附着到生物样本上，可以在非荧光材料中高度特异性地识别细胞和亚细胞成分。此外，多个目标分子可以同时与发射不同波长的光的多个荧光团一起可视化。然后使用图像分析软件对采集的串行光学切片进行渲染，以生成样本的清晰高分辨率三维重建，其中所有离焦光均已被拒绝。 结果是生物样本的异常清晰的高分辨率图像，可以揭示单个分子的存在。该仪器对于生物结构的研究至关重要，并将对 W&L、VMI 和 MBC 培训新兴年轻科学家的方式产生变革性影响。 CLSM 将为教师提供最先进的工具来开展他们的研究项目，并为来自三个农村本科院校的本科生提供显微镜培训和研究机会。使用教师-学者模式，将研究与基于发现的实验室课程工作、W&L 和 VMI 无缝集成，将充分利用这种仪器来促进研究进一步融入课程，扩大本科生计划性研究机会，并促进部门和机构内部和之间的学生和教师合作。