MRI: Acquisition of an Integrated Fluorescence and Atomic Force

该项目的目标是获得一个尖端的商业多功能集成荧光/原子力显微镜（IF-AFM），以支持基础和跨学科的研究项目和应用生物物理学和纳米科学教育计划在格兰德河谷，南得克萨斯州地区。IF-AFM将安装在德克萨斯大学布朗斯维尔分校（UTB），并将用作共享表征设施。该仪器旨在测量各种物理，化学和生物物理特性，包括单分子水平和各种条件下的纳米结构，纳米机械和电学。光学集成为高分辨率成像、力测量和纳米操纵提供了几乎无限的可能性。IF-AFM的吸引人的特点是，AFM针尖可以被光学引导，在样品的特定区域进行纳米操纵。这项技术是唯一能够揭示个人和集体行为之间的相互作用。此次收购将加强现有的研究和教育基础设施，并将提供国家的最先进的测量系统，以广泛的用户在得克萨斯州，从而提升先进的纳米材料研究和教育计划在格兰德河谷的全球竞争力的水平。IF-AFM仪器的收购将使基础研究工具集在广泛的生物物理学，生物医学和材料计划，包括生物膜形成，细菌粘附，细菌力学和动力学，蛋白质聚集和相互作用，生物成像和纳米结构表面的物理显著增强。IF-AFM的能力将激发新的变革性研究方向的发展，以发现管理细胞机制运作的潜在生物物理原理，并利用这些知识来解开困扰数百万人的许多疾病的机制。人们还预计，所学到的将有助于开发新的生物启发材料，这将对生物医学和生物纳米技术应用产生深远的影响。该项目汇集了得克萨斯州和全国各地的各种机构：得克萨斯大学布朗斯维尔和得克萨斯大学泛美（UTPA）-少数西班牙裔大学，得克萨斯大学奥斯汀分校和代顿大学。IF-AFM具有广泛的功能，将使物理学，工程学，生物学和生物医学领域的潜在用户受益。共享使用该工具将促进多机构，跨学科的合作，这将提高参与大学的80多名本科生和研究生的教育经验。 IF-AFM也将成为物理学，生物学，生物医学和工程科学专业的研究培训的重要组成部分，这些专业来自代表性不足的少数群体。教育计划通过以下两种方式提供学习机会：㈠课程开发和㈡实践观察。PI将开发和教授两门生物物理学新课程，将研究成果整合到更广泛的生物物理学背景下。为了激励下一代科学家，PI将与当地初中/高中学生合作，作为UTB科学与工程博览会的一部分，通过显微镜和建模活动向他们介绍细胞运动的物理学。这些研究和教学工作的结果将通过摘要和同行评议的出版物，以及学生和教师在专业会议的积极参与广泛传播。

The objective of this project is to acquire a cutting-edge commercial multi-functional Integrated Fluorescence/Atomic Force Microscope (IF-AFM) to support fundamental and interdisciplinary research projects and the applied biophysics and nanoscience education programs in the Rio Grande Valley, South Texas region. The IF-AFM will be installed at the University of Texas at Brownsville (UTB) and will be used as a shared characterization facility. This instrument is designed to measure a variety of physical, chemical, and biophysical properties including nanostructural, nanomechanical, and electrical at the single molecule level and under a variety of conditions. The optical integration offers almost endless possibilities in high resolution imaging, force measurements, and nanomanipulations. The attractive feature of the IF-AFM is that the AFM tip can be guided optically to perform nanomanipulations at specific areas of the specimen. This technique is uniquely capable of shedding light on the interplay between individual and collective behavior. This acquisition will enhance the existing research and educational infrastructure and will provide the state-of-the-art measurement system to a broad range of users in State of Texas, thereby elevating advanced nano-materials research and educational programs in the Rio Grande Valley to a globally competitive level. The IF-AFM instrument acquisition will enable significant enhancement of basic research toolset across a wide range of biophysical, biomedical, and material programs including physics of biofilm formation, bacterial adhesion, bacterial mechanics and dynamics, protein aggregation and interaction, bioimaging, and nanostructured surfaces. The enabling IF-AFM capabilities will inspire development of new transformative research directions to discover the underlying biophysical principles that govern the operation of cellular machinery and use this knowledge to unravel the mechanisms of many diseases that afflict millions of people. It is also expected that what is learned will help in the development of new biologically-inspired materials which will have far-reaching consequences for biomedical and bio-nanotechnological applications. This project brings together a diverse group of institutions in Texas and nationwide: University of Texas at Brownsville and University of Texas Pan American (UTPA) - the minority Hispanic universities, University of Texas at Austin and Dayton University. The IF-AFM has a wide range of capabilities which will benefit potential users from physics, engineering, biology, and biomedical fields. Shared use of the instrument will promote multi-institutional, inter-disciplinary collaborations that will enhance the educational experience of more than 80 undergraduate and graduate students of participating universities. The IF-AFM will also become an essential element of research-based training for physics, biology, biomedical, and engineering science majors from underrepresented minority group. The educational plan provides learning opportunities through combined (i) course development and (ii) hands-on observations. The PI will develop and teach two new courses on Biological Physics that integrate research results in a broader biophysical context. To motivate the next generation of scientists, the PI will work with local middle/high school students as part of UTB Science and Engineering Expo, introducing them firsthand to the physics of cellular locomotion through microscopy and modeling activities. The results of these research and teaching efforts will be broadly disseminated through abstracts and peer reviewed publications, as well as by active participation of students and faculty at professional meetings.