MRI: Acquisition of a Multi-Modality Multi-Photon Digital Light Sheet Microscope in the Pacific Northwest to Support Bioengineering Research and Development

该奖项授予蒙大拿州立大学，以获得一个独特配置的多模态多光子数字荧光显微镜。蒙大拿州立大学生物膜工程中心，也就是所要求的仪器所在的地方，最初成立于1990年，是一个美国国家科学基金会工程研究中心（ERC），它的中心任务是通过生物膜的研究、教育和推广来推进健康、能源、工业和环境的前沿。从成立之初，生物膜工程中心就采取了跨学科的方法进行基础和应用研究，这种方法一直持续到今天，体现了蒙大拿州立大学的赠地使命，即整合学习和发现。这样的研究使学生能够将基础知识应用于现实世界的挑战。目前，基于工程的生物应用面临的最大挑战之一是能够无创地实时可视化高度复制的活体生物系统。为了克服在自然和工程系统中进行生理学相关研究的挑战，多光子数字荧光显微镜将实现前所未有的图像采集速度，显着降低光毒性，提供单细胞的高分辨率无标签识别，并增加穿透深度，产生更能代表完整生物膜的图像。所有这些进步对于在成像过程中保持细胞活力是不可或缺的，并将支持三个学院（工程、科学和农业）的教职员工和学生的研究项目。该仪器的获得将允许对完整、复杂的生物样品进行尖端、实时、高灵敏度的成像，因此非常适合生物膜系统。本项目由CBET-MRI项目和EPSCoR项目共同资助。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This award is made to Montana State University to acquire a uniquely configured Multi-Modality Multi-Photon Digital Fluorescence Microscope. The Center for Biofilm Engineering at Montana State University, where the requested instrument will be located, was originally established in 1990 as an NSF Engineering Research Center (ERC), and it has a central mission to advance the frontiers of health, energy, industry, and the environment through biofilm research, education, and outreach. From inception, the Center for Biofilm Engineering has taken a transdisciplinary approach to fundamental and applied research that continues today and that embodies the Montana State University land-grant mission for the integration of learning and discovery. Such research empowers students to apply fundamental knowledge to real-world challenges. Currently, one of the biggest challenges for engineering-based biological applications is the ability to noninvasively visualize highly replicated live bio-systems in real-time.To overcome challenges with conducting physiologically relevant research in natural and engineered systems, the Multi-Photon Digital Fluorescence Microscope will enable unprecedented image acquisition speeds, significantly reduce phototoxicity, provide high resolution label free identification of single cells, and increase penetration depths producing images more representative of intact biofilms. All of these advancements are integral to maintaining cell viability during imaging and will support research projects of faculty, staff, and students across three colleges (Engineering, Science, and Agriculture). The acquisition of this instrument will allow cutting-edge, real-time, high-sensitivity imaging of intact, complex biological samples and is, thus, ideally suited for biofilm systems.This project is jointly funded by CBET-MRI Program and the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) Program.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.