MRI: Acquisition of a Quantitative Microscopy Workstation for Neuroscience and Developmental Biology Research

在南希·伦佩尔·克洛博士的指导下，格林内尔学院获得了一笔赠款，用于购买一个定量显微镜工作站，供学生/教师在神经科学和发育生物学方面进行合作研究。 显微镜工作站包括一个研究显微镜配备了共聚焦能力和计算机系统的神经解剖分析和三维重建。 这个定量显微镜工作站将支持格林内尔生物学和心理学系的研究，并将用于解决神经科学和发育生物学领域的各种研究问题。定量显微镜工作站将使调查，这将有助于我们了解有关神经和发育过程的基本问题。 新设备将用于研究：1）大鼠杏仁核和前额皮质之间的神经解剖学联系; 2）C。咽线虫; 3）鸡胚胎中的透镜形成; 4）蜥蜴神经肌肉接头中的突触可塑性; 5）调节REM睡眠结构的神经元和神经化学底物。 利用显微镜工作站开展的拟议活动具有广泛的影响。格林内尔学院大力支持跨学科的研究和教学，其特点是使用拟议的显微镜工作站。与此补助金获得的设备将用于跨部门，以满足教师和学生的复杂的显微镜分析的研究需求。学生目前获得了一些经验，在显微镜在几个现有的课程，和新的工作站提供了一个宝贵的机会，让学生扩大他们的显微镜技能在更专业的应用，培训，这将有助于他们在未来的研究工作。格林内尔学院是在科学培训代表性不足的群体的领导者，和教师谁将使用显微镜工作站已整体参与计划，以加强对这些学生的科学教育。获得此补助金的工作站将通过提供用于神经科学和发育生物学应用的定量显微镜分析的复杂工具来显着增强学院的基础设施，并将丰富广泛的学生的研究培训和学习。

A grant has been awarded to Grinnell College under the direction of Dr. Nancy Rempel-Clower to purchase a quantitative microscopy workstation for collaborative student/faculty research in neuroscience and developmental biology. The microscopy workstation consists of a research microscope equipped with confocal capability and a computerized system for neuroanatomical analysis and 3-dimensional reconstruction. This quantitative microscopy workstation will support research across both the biology and the psychology departments at Grinnell, and will be used to address a variety of research questions in the areas of neuroscience and developmental biology. The quantitative microscopy workstation will enable investigations that will contribute to our understanding of basic questions about neural and developmental processes. The new equipment will be used for investigations of: 1) the neuroanatomical connections between the amygdala and prefrontal cortex in the rat; 2) the genetic basis of the development of the C. elegans pharynx; 3) lens formation in chicken embryos; 4) synaptic plasticity in the lizard neuromuscular junction; and 5) the neuronal and neurochemical substrates that regulate the structure of REM sleep. The proposed activities using the microscopy workstation have wide-ranging broader impacts. Grinnell College strongly supports interdisciplinary research and teaching, which characterizes the use of the proposed microscopy workstation. The equipment acquired with this grant will be used across departments to meet the research needs of faculty and their students for sophisticated microscopic analyses. Students currently gain some experience in microscopy in several existing courses, and the new workstation provides a valuable opportunity for students to expand their microscopy skills in more specialized applications, training that will serve them well in future research endeavors. Grinnell College is a leader in training underrepresented groups in the sciences, and the faculty who will use the microscopy workstation have been integrally involved in programs to enhance science education for these students. The workstation acquired with this grant will significantly enhance the College's infrastructure by providing sophisticated tools for quantitative microscopic analysis for neuroscience and developmental biology applications, and will enrich the research training and learning of a broad cross-section of students.