MRI: Acquisition of an Atomic Force Microscope to Enhance Research and Student Research Training in Engineering, Biochemistry, Biology and Physics departments at SF State Univ

该奖项由重大研究仪器计划(MRI)资助，通过购买多用途显微镜(Bio-AFM)为旧金山州立大学(SFSU)科学与工程学院(SFSU)的四个系/校带来新的研究和教学能力。该仪器(Bio-AFM)结合了两个强大的显微镜：(1)荧光显微镜，提供细胞和软组织等半透明生物样品的详细光学图像；(2)原子力显微镜(AFM)，提供高分辨率的样品等高线图以及各种物理特性，如力、摩擦和电势。生物科学中缺乏定量技术，迫使研究人员使用传统的评估工具，这些工具通常是主观的或不完全定量的。该仪器将通过促进新的定量技术的开发来缩小这一差距，以检测发生在分子和细胞尺度上的药物和医疗干预的微小影响。这些技术将使研究人员能够通过在微米和纳米尺度上准确测量衰老和遗传易感性对组织物理性质的影响来研究衰老和遗传易感性。该工具将作为催化剂，促进学院内部以及与外部用户和大学、研究组织和整个旧金山湾区私营行业的同事之间的跨学科合作。在为硕士和本科生提供实践经验的跨部门课程中，Bio-AFM是一个重要的教学工具。它还将扩大在一所大型城市综合性大学招收、留住和吸引学生的机会，这所大学拥有大量传统上在科学、技术、工程和数学学科中代表性不足的个人。接触这种最先进的成像和数据采集系统将增加学生的培训经验，并帮助他们为博士项目或专业生涯做好准备。该奖项促进了许多新的合作研究项目，这些项目将允许深入表征天然和工程材料的机械、电气和光学属性，以及对从软生物组织到硬金属的各种样品进行成像。该仪器具有独特的集成荧光显微镜、尖端驱动系统和先进的控制，将确保开发开源的定量评估工具，使任何现代AFM能够通过找到包括弹性和渗透性在内的内在双相特征来捕捉软生物材料的全面微观力学和纳米动力学。SFSU研究人员使用Bio-AFM还将促进以下领域的研究进展：通过使用AFM的力压痕工具和所解释的定量评估工具，检测多种生物因素，如年龄和遗传修饰对生物材料功能和力学的微妙影响；通过使用导电AFM技术，了解不同的合成条件对紫外光照射下多晶薄膜的形成和导电性的影响；通过直接绘制和量化静电纺丝纤维的表面粗糙度，阐明关键制备参数对用于能源和过滤应用的介观材料表面特征和机械性能的影响；研究细菌合成的细胞外细胞器，并使用AFM成像能力和集成荧光显微镜测量这些细胞器产生的粘附力；通过检测形态变化和使用导电AFM技术绘制静电表面电位图来评估细胞与细胞相互作用的强度。

This award, funded by the Major Research Instrumentation Program (MRI), brings new research and teaching capabilities to four Departments/schools at the College of Science and Engineering at San Francisco State University (SFSU) via acquisition of a multipurpose microscope (Bio-AFM). This instrument (Bio-AFM) combines two powerful microscopes: (1) a fluorescence microscope that provides detailed optical images of translucent biological samples, such as cells and soft tissues, and (2) an atomic force microscope (AFM) that provides high-resolution contour maps of samples as well as a broad range of physical properties, such as force, friction, and electric potential. The lack of quantitative techniques in biological sciences has forced researchers to use traditional assessment tools that are typically subjective or not completely quantitative. This instrument will close this gap by empowering development of new quantitative techniques to detect the small effect of medications and medical interventions that occur at the molecular and cellular scales. The techniques will allow researchers to study aging and genetic predisposition by accurately measuring their affects on physical properties of the tissues in micro and nano scales. The instrument will serve as a catalyst for stimulating interdisciplinary collaborations within the college as well as with external users and colleagues at universities, research organizations, and private industries across the Bay Area. The Bio-AFM serves as a critical pedagogical tool in interdepartmental courses designed to offer Masters and undergraduate students hands-on experiences. It will also expand opportunities for recruiting, retaining, and engaging students at a large, urban, comprehensive university with a significant population of individuals who are traditionally under-represented in the disciplines of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Exposure to this state-of-the-art imaging and data acquisition system will augment the training experiences of students and help prepare them for Ph.D. programs or professional careers.This award promotes a number of new collaborative research projects that will allow in-depth characterization of the mechanical, electrical, and optical properties of natural and engineered materials, as well as imaging of a wide variety of samples, ranging from soft biological tissues to hard metals. The instrument, with its uniquely integrated fluorescence microscope, cutting-edge actuation system, and advanced controls, will ensure the development of open source, quantitative assessment tools that enable any modern AFM to capture the comprehensive micro-mechanics and nano-dynamics of soft biomaterials by finding intrinsic bi-phasic characteristics including elasticity and permeability. Use of the Bio-AFM by SFSU researchers will also enable research advances in the following areas: detecting subtle effects of multiple biological factors such as age and genetic modification on the functions and mechanics of biological materials by using the force indentation tools of the AFM as well as the explained quantitative assessment tool; understanding the impact of different synthesis conditions on the formation and conductivity of polycrystalline thin films under ultraviolet illumination, commonly used in photoelectrochemical applications by using the conductive AFM technique; elucidating the effects of key fabrication parameters on the surface characteristics and mechanical properties of meso-scale materials for energy and filtration applications, by direct mapping and quantification of the surface roughness of electrospun fibers; investigating extracellular organelles synthesized by bacteria and measuring adhesive forces generated by these organelles using the AFM imaging capabilities and the integrated fluorescent microscope; and evaluating the strength of cell-cell interactions by detecting morphological changes and mapping the electrostatic surface potential by using the conductive AFM technique.