High Resolution Confocal Scanning Microscope for Live Cell Studies

目前在我们的设施中，我们正在运行由DFG资助的共聚焦激光扫描显微镜，以实现活细胞显微镜和光操纵(光激活、光转化、光漂白、荧光共振能量转移、微照射)。该系统于2010年购得，现已报废。在过去的12年里，这个系统在我们的设施中变得必不可少，因此我们迫切需要一个替代品。除了以前系统中可能的技术外，我们的目标是将其能力扩展到光学超分辨率显微镜。后者已经使用了几年，但只有在外部合作的情况下才可行。计划收购的超分辨率共聚焦扫描显微镜有望通过超分辨率增强实现达姆施塔特理工大学的技术飞跃，代表光学显微镜的最新水平。这项技术可以直接整合到现有的研究活动中，也可以作为一种面向未来的技术用于现有和计划中的研究项目。超分辨光学显微镜将使横向和轴向空间分辨率得到显著提高，这是当前结构功能研究中必须解决的问题。通过与共聚焦扫描仪相结合，保留了生成概览图像和执行光操纵的能力，这将继续满足我们广泛的用户基础的需求。重要的是，该系统必须与当前使用的荧光团兼容，并允许光谱检测，以满足我们的核心设施和广泛的用户要求。

Currently in our facility we are operating a DFG-funded confocal laser scanning microscopy enabling live-cell microscopy and photomanipulation (photoactivation, photoconversion, photobleaching, fluorescence resonance energy transfer, microirradiation). This system was acquired in 2010 and has reached its end-of-life. In the last 12 years, this system became essential in our facility, and consequently we urgently need a replacement. In addition to the technologies possible in the previous system, we aim to expand its abilities into optical super-resolution microscopy. The latter has been used for several years but is only feasible with outside collaborations. The planned acquisition of a super-resolution confocal point-scanning microscope is expected to realize a technological leap at the TU Darmstadt through super-resolution enhancement, representing the current state of the art in optical microscopy. This technology can be integrated directly into existing research activities, as well as being used as a future-oriented technology in existing and planned research projects. Super-resolution optical microscopy will enable a significant improvement in lateral and axial spatial resolution, which is a must in current structure-function studies. By combination with a confocal point scanner, the ability to generate overview images and perform photomanipulation is preserved, which will continue to fulfill the needs of our broad user base. Importantly, the system must be compatible with currently used fluorophores and allow spectral detection, to serve our core facility broad user requirements.