Real-time cell metabolic analyser

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Mitochondria are essential organelles in eukaryotic cells and most widely known as powerhouses that supply the majority of ATP for cellular reactions. Due to their central role in energy metabolism and several other biosynthetic pathways, investigation of mitochondria is crucial to understand cellular function. Recent data have shown that mitochondria are not isolated entities, but communicate with the rest of the cell via signalling pathways and that they are physically interconnected to other organelles via extensive contact sites. These findings underline the necessity to investigate mitochondria in the global cellular context. Therefore, classical biochemical in vitro and in organello assays using isolated mitochondria need to be extended by in vivo analysis to allow comprehensive investigation of the physiological role of mitochondria. The requirement for a more global approach to mitochondrial functions has resulted in a high demand for advanced metabolic analysis of live cells. In addition, the connection of mitochondria with other organelles as well as their highly dynamic nature, which allows them to adapt their shape to cellular requirements, have made imaging of cells an essential read-out for understanding mitochondrial physiology, and also pathophysiology. At the Centre of Molecular Biology, the Anatomy and Cell Biology Institute and the Biochemistry Center of Heidelberg University several research groups study the role of mitochondria and metabolism ranging from mitochondrial and cellular proteostasis, to metabolic reprogramming during stem cell differentiation to neural cell engineering. In all of these projects, the investigation and manipulation of cellular metabolism coupled to imaging analysis is highly needed. Here we apply for a real-time metabolic analyser, which coupled to an accessory multi-mode imaging device will allow consecutive metabolic and imaging analyses in real time. The metabolic analyser as well as the imaging system are fully compatible and allow analysis of 96-well plates for rapid in vivo screening of various conditions. The instruments share the same software, which will allow easy usage and consequently efficient training of graduate students and post-docs. The metabolic and imaging analyses will fulfil a major demand to investigate cell metabolism and function focusing on mitochondria for research groups at the ZMBH and the neighbouring institutes at the university.