MRI: Acquisition of a versatile, user-friendly, automated fluorescence microscope to promote research performed by faculty and undergraduates at a Hispanic-serving institution

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An award is made to St. Edward's University (SEU) to do state-of-the-art fluorescence microscopy as part of faculty-mentored research and course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs). SEU is a minority-serving institution with a diverse student body, many of whom are first-generation college students. Faculty-mentored research at SEU is usually their first exposure to novel scientific research. The acquisition of this microscope improves the research infrastructure by promoting the quality of faculty-sponsored independent research, increasing and enhancing the number of cell-molecular experiments performed as part of CUREs, and broadening the types of outreach programs involving Austin Community College students and K-12 teachers and students. Finally, this microscope will provide needed synergy with other current NSF-funded projects at SEU.Fluorescence microscopy allows the detection and analysis of molecular and cellular structures, molecular dynamics, and gene expression through a panoply of widely available fluorophore-conjugated molecules and genetically-encoded fluorescent proteins. This award facilitates the purchase of a microscope that is conducive to live imaging under controlled environments, high-sensitivity detection of faint fluorophores, optical sectioning of thick specimens, and 3D image acquisitions. The instrumentation enables the research of a highly diverse set of scientific programs at SEU: (1) Characterization of the interplay between cellular metabolic regulation and neurodevelopment in soil-dwelling nematodes, (2) Determination of the molecular mechanism underlying interactions between host cells and parasitic pathogens like those causing toxoplasmosis, (3) Understanding the molecular basis of variation for patterning of the egg shell in fruit flies, (4) Investigation of the bacterial targets of antimicrobial plant extracts and examination of the protective action of probiotics, and (5) Characterization of plant-fungal interactions in response to phosphate stress.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.