Acquisition of Multicolor Spinning-Disk Confocal Microscope for New Applications In 4D Cellular Imaging and Analysis

Yale University, New Haven CT

Investigators

Abstract

A grant has been awarded to Yale University under the direction of Drs. Ira Mellman and Derek Toomre for the acquisition of a state-of-the-art multicolor spinning disk confocal microscope for the imaging and analysis of living cells. A central problem facing modern biology is to understand how cellular activities are integrated in space and time; this challenge applies to every branch of cell biology ranging from fundamental aspects of cellular organization and biogenesis to immunology, neurobiology, developmental biology, and microbiology. Increasingly, high resolution live cell imaging is emerging as a key tool in helping one understand how molecules, vesicles, organelles and whole cells are (re)organized in response to internal and external cues. New technologies that enable the rapid analysis of intact cells is needed to give a complete picture of these processes, and to study objects that occupy or dynamically traverse several optical planes as a function of time. Such imaging is therefore referred to as being "four-dimensional", capturing the behavior of a single cell in three physical dimensions plus time. The instrument will be the first of its kind at Yale University enabling experiments that were impossible using slower conventional confocal microscopes. In summary, this unique microscope will enable new applications in cellular imaging and analysis, permitting quantitative analysis of biochemical reactions in living cells and tissues. This instrumentation will enable researchers from diverse fields to address an array of basic cell biological questions using model systems including yeast, worms, flies, and mammalian cells, all united by a need to investigate the complex spatial-temporal dynamics of complex cellular processes. Not only will data be visualized but a key element of the project, is the involvement of expert biomedical imaging engineers. Under the leadership of Dr. James Duncan, new software for the analysis of cell imaging datasets will be implemented and will foster new exchanges between life scientists and those in the engineering and computational fields. Private corporate partnerships will further enhance the capabilities of the instrument. In addition to enabling research for a diverse group of students, post-docs and visiting scientists, the instrumentation and supporting infrastructure will provide relevant training and education through seminars and courses. Underrepresented minorities will participate under the auspices of Yale's well established "STARS" summer internship program, and a new biology educational mentorship program for underprivileged New Haven students.