CONFOCAL IMAGING FACILITY

目前的提案旨在在波多黎各大学Rio Piedras校区生物系建立一个共焦成像设施。 所要求的设备是一台共聚焦激光扫描显微镜及其附件。共聚焦显微镜已成为细胞和分子生物学研究中一种强大的，几乎是必不可少的工具。 其应用范围从使用目标特异性荧光探针和标记抗体对固定细胞中的细胞组分进行精确解析到对单个细胞内的离子浓度进行定量分析。购置这些设备将直接影响五名研究人员、他们的研究助理、博士后、研究生和本科生的研究。 这些研究人员的目标是使用该设备来回答与以下相关的问题：（1）通过荧光探针定位单个细胞或细胞器中的分子或细胞组分以及生理和药理学扰动产生的变化。 (2)成像细胞内钙浓度的变化所产生的膜通道的激活和/或通过添加海洋无脊椎动物毒素通过使用荧光钙指示剂。 (3)采用高分辨免疫组化双标记技术，探讨发育和再生过程中细胞之间以及细胞与细胞外基质之间的关系。(4)表征新的基因产物。共聚焦设施的建立还将有助于加强普遍定期审议的细胞/分子方案，并为岛上依赖普遍定期审议设施进行合作和培训其教师、学生和其他雇员的许多其他机构提供间接利益。

The current proposal aims at establishing a confocal imaging facility in the Department of Biology of the University of Puerto Rico (UPR), Rio Piedras Campus. The equipment requested is a Confocal laser Scanning Microscope with its accessories. Confocal microscopy has become a powerful, almost essential, tool in Cellular and Molecular Biology studies. Its applications range from exquisite resolution of cellular components in fixed cells using target specific fluorescent probes and labeled antibodies to quantitative analyses of ion concentrations within a single cell. The acquisition of the equipment will impact directly the research of five investigators, their research associates, post-doctorals, graduate and undergraduate students. These researchers aim at using the equipment to answer questions related to: (1) Localization of molecules or cellular components in a single cell or organelle via fluorescence probes and the changes produced by physiological and pharmacological perturbations. (2) Imaging intracellular calcium concentration changes produced by activation of membrane channels and/or by the addition of marine invertebrate toxins by using fluorescent calcium indicators. (3) Explore the relationship between cells and between cells and the extracellular matrix during development and regeneration processes by high resolution double labeling immunohistochemistry. (4) Characterizing novel gene products. The establishment of the confocal facility will also serve to strengthen the Cellular/Molecular Program of the UPR and provide indirect benefits to many other institutions on the island who depend on facilities at the UPR for collaboration and the training of their faculty, students and other employees.