Live Cell Imaging System for Biomechanics and Mechanobiology Research

项目摘要 这项提议的目标是获得蔡司Axio观察者7活细胞成像系统，该系统将与 具有可用的定制和商业生物反应器系统，使生物医学研究能够专注于 博伊西州立大学研究人员的形变显微镜、力学适应和细胞跟踪方法 以及邻近和合作机构。由NIH倡议生物医学研究中心领导 卓越(Cobre)在基质生物学和爱达荷州生物医学研究卓越网络(INBRE)在那里 是博伊西州专注于生物力学和机械生物学的生物医学研究的快速增长。这些 生物医学工程等新的博士项目和现有的博士项目都进一步支持了这一努力 材料工程和生物分子科学等项目的生物工程重点增加了 这些年。尽管有了这样的增长，博伊西州立大学只有一台共焦显微镜为所有研究人员服务。 这不仅阻碍了更适合3D应用的共焦系统的使用，而且还限制了 研究细胞外信号如何调节活细胞功能的机械方法。Axio观察者7号 具有机械生物学能力是一种关键的工具，用于各种和不断增加的生物医学 博伊西州立大学的研究人员。这些研究人员包括生物医学工程师、生物机械师和 来自三所学院的生物学家：工程学院、健康科学学院和艺术学院 科学。该小组研究的一个统一主题是对机械活动肌肉骨骼的调查 处于正常、患病和治疗状态的系统和材料。博伊西州立大学进行战略投资 大学，这一群体在过去10年中迅速增长(7名新教师，5个新实验室)，创造了一个临界量 互补的专业知识，定位于在变革性和协作性矫形外科和 肌肉骨骼研究。然而，实现这一潜力需要购买最先进的设备来 研究从分子到组织尺度的生理和病理生理过程。我们链接的能力 这种结构层次结构目前受到缺乏一种可以应用生理上相关的系统的限制 具有观察分子和力学后果的能力的力。因此，生物医学学院 博伊西州立大学在从基础科学发现过渡到创新方面准备不足 与肌肉骨骼健康相关的直接临床应用。因此，这种活细胞有一个明显的好处 该显微镜系统提供的成像和机械信号功能。收购Axio 具有机械生物学能力的观察者7号将纠正这一缺陷，并将不仅受益于NIH资助的 目前的项目，但也刺激启动了许多有影响力的项目，具有很高的筹资潜力。

Project Summary The goal of this proposal is to acquire a Zeiss Axio Observer 7 Live Cell Imaging system which will be coupled with available custom-made and commercial bioreactor systems that will enable biomedical research focused on deformation microscopy, mechano-adaptation and cell tracking approaches for researchers at Boise State as well as neighboring and collaborator institutions. Led by NIH initiatives Center of Biomedical Research Excellence (COBRE) at Matrix Biology and Idaho Network of Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE) there was a rapid growth of biomedical research focused at biomechanics and mechanobiology in Boise State. These efforts are further supported by both new PhD programs like Biomedical Engineering and by established PhD programs such Materials Engineering and Biomolecular Sciences that seen increased Bioengineering focus over the years. Despite this growth, there is only one confocal microscope to serve all the researchers in Boise State. This not only bottlenecks the use of confocal system which is better suited for 3D applications, but also limits mechanistic approaches to study how extracellular cues regulate function of living cells. The Axio Observer 7 with mechanobiology apabilities is a critical instrument for a diverse and growing number of biomedical researchers at Boise State University. These researchers include biomedical engineers, biomechanists, and biologists from three colleges: College of Engineering, College of Health Sciences, and College of Arts and Sciences. A unifying theme of this group’s research is the investigation of mechanically active musculoskeletal systems and materials in normal, diseased, and treated states. With strategic investments by Boise State University, this group has rapidly grown in the last 10 years (7 new faculty, 5 new labs), creating a critical mass of complementary expertise that is positioned to collaborate on transformative and synergistic orthopaedic and musculoskeletal research. Yet achieving this potential requires the acquisition of state-of-the-art equipment to investigate the physiological and pathophysiological processes from molecular to tissue scales. Our ability to link this structural hierarchy is currently limited by the absence of a system that can apply physiologically relevant forces with a capability to observe molecular and mechanical consequences. As a result, biomedical faculty at Boise State University are poorly equipped to transition from discoveries in basic science to innovations with direct clinical application related to musculoskeletal health. Therefore there is a clear benefit of this live-cell imaging and mechanosignaling capabilities offered by this microscope system. The acquisition of the Axio Observer 7 with mechanobiology capabilities will correct this deficiency and will not only benefit NIH funded current project but also spur the initiation of many impactful projects with high funding potential.