MRI: Acquisition of confocal microscopy system for dynamic imaging and analysis in research and learning at Trinity University

美国国家科学基金会-主要研究仪器计划将使德克萨斯州圣安东尼奥的三一大学能够获得尼康A1共焦显微镜系统。共焦显微镜技术从活的或固定的生物标本中获得高分辨率、三维、多色的图像或视频。生物系统是动态的，通过分子之间复杂的相互作用进行调节。共焦显微镜技术对样品进行光学切片，最大限度地减少离焦光，以获得卓越的图像质量和三维图像重建。共聚焦显微镜将允许研究人员通过使用多色荧光标记来确定空间和时间的相互作用。PI和四个COPIS的研究解决了一系列不同的生物学问题，包括上皮细胞连接的动态平衡、中枢神经系统的新陈代谢和自噬、节段再生、微生物代谢物的生物合成、氧化信号和线粒体功能、肌肉纤维类型分析和细胞迁移的数学模型。具有亚微米分辨率的高速、多色、三维重建使人们能够在所有这些领域发现和分析复杂的生物现象。配备光谱探测器的共焦系统将背景信号降至最低，并允许研究人员使用具有重叠光谱特征的染料。共聚焦和分子研究需要高速共振扫描头和光谱探测器，以便准确、实时地进行光谱区分，以解决瞬时相互作用。环境舱与完美的聚焦系统相结合，可以实时进行亚细胞成分的活细胞研究和分子相互作用的成像。尼康A1共聚焦显微镜系统将安装在三一大学新的科学与创新中心的成像套件中。成像套件将汇集三一大学的教职员工和学生研究人员，以及来自当地机构的教职员工和学生研究人员，包括化身世界大学和圣菲利普斯社区学院，以解决一系列需要共焦显微镜的生物学问题。研究人员在让本科生参与他们的研究并利用他们的研究项目为课堂和教学实验室开发创新的学习体验方面有着既定的记录。生物学、神经科学、数学和物理学的本科生课程将体验如何将共焦显微镜用于发现和研究。三一大学将为该地区举办一系列共焦显微镜研讨会，讨论这项技术的理论和实践考虑。调查人员还与当地的科学教育工作者和本科生合作，规划科学教育的职业生涯。

The NSF-Major Research Instrumentation program will enable Trinity University of San Antonio, TX to acquire a Nikon A1 confocal microscopy system. Confocal microscopy technology produces high resolution, three-dimensional, multicolor images or videos obtained from live or fixed biological specimens. Biological systems are dynamic and regulated through complex interactions between molecules. The confocal microscope technology optically sections through the sample, minimizing out of focus light to yield superior image quality and three-dimensional image reconstructions. The confocal microscope will allow investigators to determine spatial and temporal interactions through the use of multi-color fluorescence labeling. Research by the PI and four coPIs addresses a diverse array of biological problems, including epithelial cell junction homeostasis, metabolism and autophagy in the central nervous system, segmental regeneration, microbial metabolite biosynthesis, oxidant signaling and mitochondrial function, muscle fiber type analysis and mathematical modeling of cell migration. High-speed, multicolor, three-dimensional reconstruction with submicron resolution capability permits discovery and analysis of complex biological phenomena in all of these areas. The confocal system equipped with the spectral detector minimizes background signal and allows investigators to use dyes with overlapping spectral characteristics. Colocalization and molecular studies require the high-speed resonant scan-head and spectral detector for accurate, real-time spectral differentiation to resolve transient interactions. The environmental chamber in combination with the Perfect Focus system enables live cell research of sub-cellular components and imaging of molecular interactions in real-time. The Nikon A1 confocal microscope system is to be housed in the Imaging Suite within the new Center for Sciences and Innovation at Trinity University. The Imaging Suite will bring together Trinity University faculty and student researchers as well as faculty and student researchers from local institutions, including the University of the Incarnate Word and St. Phillips Community College, to address a range a biological questions requiring confocal microscopy. The investigators have an established record for engaging undergraduate students in their research and using their research programs to develop innovative learning experiences for the classroom and teaching laboratory. Undergraduate science courses in Biology, Neuroscience, Mathematics and Physics will experience how confocal microscopy may be used in discovery and investigations. Trinity University will host a series of confocal microscopy workshops for the area that address both theoretical and practical considerations for this technology. The investigators are also partnering with local science educators and undergraduate students planning careers in science education.