MRI: Acquisition of a Scanning Spectral Confocal Microscope for Multidisciplinary Research, Teaching and Outreach

扫描光谱共聚焦显微镜(SPCM)是一种高度通用的仪器，适用于许多研究项目，旨在表征生物体及其细胞内的生物过程。NSF MRI奖允许新英格兰大学获得这种显微镜，作为核心显微镜设施的支柱，使基础科学系的教职员工和学生能够扩大他们的研究计划。值得注意的是，SPCM可以阐明以前只能间接获得的各种生物系统的结构细节。该机构支持的项目涉及面广，涉及各种重要的生物学问题。主要使用者检查信号转导、类固醇对神经系统的影响、血脑屏障的完整性、生物膜的形成、环境中粪便病原体的特征以及蛋白质-蛋白质相互作用。随着更大的UNE研究界获得核心设施的能力，显微镜的购置正在导致许多其他研究领域的发展。显微镜为大学的教育项目做出了贡献，因为先进的成像能力为学生提供了向学生演示各种生物过程的绝佳机会。显微镜是研究复杂的生物和非生物材料的重要研究工具。由于其独特的能力来观察材料的三维结构，共焦显微镜近年来已经成为一种可以用来检查材料结构和功能之间关系的工具。例如，我们可以对材料的特定成分进行染色，以确定它们是生物反应还是化学反应的积极参与者。新英格兰大学的研究人员利用这一设备来推进他们对细胞如何相互作用的理解，以便更好地理解基本的生物过程。显微镜是大学宣传和教育活动的中心，因为生物(和非生物)过程的图片和电影被传送到偏远地区，例如为K-12学生提供在微观尺度上观察生物学的独特视角，帮助激发下一代生物科学家。

The scanning spectral confocal microscope (SPCM) is a highly versatile instrument suited to many research projects designed to characterize biological processes within organisms and their cells. The NSF MRI award has allowed the University of New England to acquire this microscope as the anchor for a core microscope facility that is enabling faculty, staff, and students in the basic sciences departments to expand their research programs. Significantly the SPCM can elucidate structural details in a variety of biological systems that previously could only be obtained indirectly, if at all. The projects supported by this facility are wide-ranging and address a broad diversity of important biological questions. The primary users examine signal transduction, the effects of steroids on nervous systems, the integrity of the blood-brain barrier, biofilm formation, characterization of fecal pathogens in the environment, and protein-protein interactions. The acquisition of the microscope is leading to the development of many additional areas of research as the capabilities of the core facility are accessed by the larger UNE research community. The microscope contributes to the educational programs at the University, as the advanced imaging capabilities provide excellent opportunities to demonstrate a variety of biological processes to the students. Microscopy is an important research tool for examining the intricacies of both biological and non-biological materials. Because of its unique ability to look into the three-dimensional structure of a material, confocal microscopy has emerged over recent years as a tool that can be used to examine the connections between the structure of a material and its function. For example, we can stain specific components of a material to see if they are active participants in a biological or chemical reaction. Researchers at the University of New England use this facility to advance their understanding of how cells interact in order to better understand basic biological processes. The microscope is the centerpiece in the universities outreach and education activities, as pictures and movies of biological (and non-biological) processes are streamed to remote locations to provide, for example, K-12 students with a unique look at biology at the microscopic scale, helping to stimulate the next generation of biological scientists.