Acquisition of a Transmission Electron Microscope for Undergraduate Research and Teaching

购置透射电子显微镜用于本科生研究和教学

• 批准号: 1229184
• 负责人: James Foster
• 金额: $ 46.26万
• 依托单位: Randolph-Macon College
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2012
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2012-09-01 至 2015-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1229184&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Acquisition; Transmission; Electron; Microscope; Undergraduate

This NSF MRI grant funds the acquisition of a transmission electron microscope (TEM) at Randolph-Macon College (R-MC). R-MC is a small liberal arts and sciences institution with a long tradition of undergraduate student research. Faculty members maintain active research programs and mentor undergraduate research students in several ways, including credit-bearing independent studies, capstone research projects, and through the endowed Shapiro Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) program during the summer. Acquisition of a TEM will greatly enhance the research and teaching environment at R-MC by enabling undergraduate researchers to use state of the art equipment that will promote recruitment of students from all backgrounds into the sciences. Research projects to be supported by the TEM span a broad range of the life sciences and include: compartmentalization of mammalian sperm acrosomal matrix proteins to understand their role in fertilization; evaluating how parenting responses affect neuroplasticity in rats; ultrastructural analysis of motile cells in new fungal species; characterization of host-symbiont interactions in the bryozoan Bugula neritina and its bacterial symbionts; and understanding the regulation of autophagy in T cells during calorie restriction in mice. Collaborative research with investigators at other institutions will also be enabled. In addition, the TEM will be used in several undergraduate courses, including a new Advanced Microscopy course in which students will learn specimen preparation, digital image acquisition, and analysis of electron micrographs. Existing and newly developed outreach programs will engage students from local public schools in projects and demonstrations to stimulate their interest in science.

NSF MRI赠款资助了Randolph-Macon College（R-MC）的传输电子显微镜（TEM）的收购。 R-MC是一家小型文科和科学机构，具有悠久的本科生研究传统。教职员工维护活跃的研究计划和导师本科研究专业的学生，​​包括信用的独立研究，顶峰研究项目，以及夏季通过捐赠的Shapiro本科研究奖学金（SURF）计划。通过使本科研究人员能够使用最先进的设备，可以促进来自所有背景的学生招募进入科学的技术，从而极大地增强了R-MC的研究和教学环境。 TEM跨度的研究项目广泛，包括：哺乳动物精子Arosomal基质蛋白的隔室化，以了解其在受精中的作用；评估育儿反应如何影响大鼠的神经可塑性；新真菌物种中的运动细胞的超微结构分析；在苔藓虫的牛bogula neritina及其细菌共生体中的宿主 - 共生相互作用的表征；并了解小鼠卡路里限制期间T细胞中自噬的调节。与其他机构的调查人员的合作研究也将启用。此外，TEM将用于几个本科课程，包括新的高级显微镜课程，学生将学习标本准备，数字图像获取和电子显微照片分析。 现有和新开发的外展计划将吸引当地公立学校的学生参与项目和示威活动，以激发他们对科学的兴趣。