ShEEP Request for Nikon Biostation CT System

Va Western New York Healthcare System, Buffalo NY

Investigators

Abstract

Project Summary The ability to monitor cellular changes for a prolonged period of time is critical for biomedical research at VA Western New York Healthcare System (VAWNYHS). The current confocal microscope on site does not support long-term observation of live cells. The Nikon Biostation CT is a unique system that combines a standard cell culture incubator, an inverted microscope and a robotic arm to enable continuous culture and monitoring of cells over a long period of time. The incubator supports the culture of cells at the desired temperature, humidity and gas composition (CO2, O2, N2). The inverted microscope provides live imaging for phase contrast and fluorescence with commonly used fluorophores. The robotic arm allows seamless transition of culture and observation at any time points and in any order, as controlled by the researchers. Drug application can be incorporated to observe cellular changes in response to drug treatment. This novel system will enable many new experiments that would otherwise be impossible to carry out at VAWNYHS. There is no such a system in the Buffalo area. With this system, researcher at VAWNYHS can significantly enhance their studies on a variety of projects related to the care of veterans and the discovery of new therapies for diseases that has no cure at present. These projects include identifying better treatment for sudden cardiac arrest, discovering better ways to generate induced dopaminergic neurons for Parkinson?s disease, understanding how neurons respond to various therapeutic agents for Alzheimer?s disease, investigating how retina cells degenerate in various disease conditions, finding treatment for osteoporosis, searching for agents to treat age-related macular degeneration, etc. The availability of the Biostation CT will enable VA researchers to break new grounds in the discovery of better ways to care and treat veterans.