MRI: Acquisition of a Spinning Disk Confocal Super-resolution Microscope for Transcriptomics Research at Boston University

生命科学中一些最有前途的前沿领域是由一类新的显微镜独特地实现的，这种显微镜使研究人员能够研究分子尺度的结构及其在活组织中的功能。这是生物显微镜领域的一个飞跃。在这个项目中，波士顿大学（BU）的工程师，科学家和医生的合作小组将获得一个新的超分辨率旋转圆盘共聚焦显微镜，并使用它来精确研究细胞内的基因表达如何进行其赋予生命的功能，以及神经元如何在大脑网络中相互连接并发出信号，指导行为并创造记忆。获得这一变革性工具将促进生命科学和工程学科交叉领域的前沿研究，加强对研究生和未来从业人员的跨学科培训。这一共享研究仪器的使用直接影响了BU的学术界，以及面向少数民族服务教育机构和社区学院的弱势群体和教师的强大暑期项目。该项目将为BU光子学中心管理的共享核心设施购买尼康CSU-W1-索拉超分辨率旋转圆盘共聚焦显微镜。这种最近商业化的显微镜提供了成像速度和分辨率的组合，包括生物显微镜领域的一个步骤。它允许，第一次，荧光成像的分辨率和帧速率足以探索大的生物样品体积与分子精度在真实的时间。显微镜独特的功能组合使变革性的研究领域成为可能，包括空间分辨转录组学，一种将基因表达与细胞空间组织联系起来的技术;多尺度连接组学，一种在活体神经系统中创建神经连接的全面三维地图的技术;以及活细胞和组织成像，通过活细胞和组织成像，可以研究活细胞、工程组织、类器官和整个生物体的结构和功能属性。该显微镜是BU校园中的第一台，将成为BU生命科学和工程研究小组的主要资产，包括来自五个不同部门的九个主要用户。预计显微镜的高利用率，特别是考虑到该仪器的强大，交钥匙操作和成像模式之间的无缝切换的声誉。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并已被认为是值得的支持，通过评估使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准。

Some of the most promising frontiers in life science are uniquely enabled by a new class of microscopes that allow researchers to study molecular-scale structures and the functions they perform within living tissue. This is a step-change in the field of biomicroscopy. In this project, a collaborative group of engineers, scientists, and physicians at Boston University (BU) will acquire a new super-resolution spinning-disk confocal microscope and use it to study precisely how gene expression within cells conduct their lifegiving functions and how neurons connect to and signal one another in brain networks that guide behavior and create memories. Access to this transformative instrument will catalyze cutting edge research at the intersection of life science and engineering disciplines, enhancing interdisciplinary training for graduate students and future practitioners. Use of this shared research instrument directly impacts BU's academic community, as well as robust summer programs oriented to underserved groups and teachers in minority serving educational institutions and community colleges.The project will acquire a Nikon CSU-W1-SoRa super- resolution spinning disk confocal microscope for a shared core facility managed by the BU Photonics Center. This recently commercialized microscope offers a combination of imaging speed and resolution that comprises a step-change in the field of biomicroscopy. It allows, for the first time, fluorescence imaging with resolution and frame rate sufficient to explore large biological sample volumes with molecular precision in real time. Transformative research areas that are enabled by the microscope's unique combination of features include spatially resolved transcriptomics, a technique to connect gene expression to the spatial organization of cells; multi-scale connectomics, a technique to create comprehensive three-dimensional maps of neural connectivity in a living nervous system; and live cell and tissue imaging, through which structural and functional attributes of living cells, engineered tissues, organoids, and whole organisms can be studied. The first of its type on the BU campus, this microscope will be a major asset for life-science and engineering research groups at BU, including nine major users from five different departments. High utilization of the microscope is anticipated, especially given the instrument's reputation for robust, turnkey operation and seamless switching among imaging modalities.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.