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A picture is worth a thousand words and hence ‘Imaging’ is an essential component of most research and reporting using tissues and cells. The morphology of cells and tissues vary with different physiological and pathological states. This can be observed with different methods of staining or labelling with fluorophore labelled anti-bodies that can localize to regions of interest. But cells are much larger than the organelle and tubules contained within themselves. Therefore, it becomes essential to draw extremely thin sections as is done for transmission electron microscopy. This can be done effectively by optical sectioning using confocal imaging technology. Today it is even possible to reconstruct stacks of confocal images into a three-dimensional model that provides more information that can be analysed with relevance to the condition of the cells and their organelles etc. than a two-dimensional picture. Hence, at the Core Research Facility at AIIMS, where cutting edge research technology would be used to answer relevant questions regarding the health of the Indian population we have an imaging platform that provides various imaging methods such as single photon/multiphoton fluorescence or imaging with UV lasers in simultaneous or sequential mode with a possibility to image live cells with and without labeling (by Coherent anti-Stokes Raman Scattering that visualizes vibrational contrast between different molecules in the cells).
LASER Confocal Microscopy Facility with Live-cell Imaging
The Confocal Microscopy Facility at CCRF has been established to cater to the high-resolution imaging needs of researchers at AIIMS. With the Zeiss LSM980 system in place, one can now image samples with high spatio-temporal resolution. This state-of-the-art confocal system is equipped with a temperature and gas-controlled incubation chamber for live imaging applications. Whether you are looking for high-resolution protein localization within the cell or want to capture high-speed ion flux in an organelle, this system is capable of performing these tasks.
The facility also has an offline ZEN image processing system that can be used for data analyses, quantifications, and 3D reconstruction. This is separate from the image acquisition system and ensures that the online confocal system is not blocked for data processing. The facility will support researchers with data quantification and suggest the type of analyses that might be required to make conclusions from the acquired data. There is help at hand for performing high quality imaging for thesis submissions, manuscript publications, etc.
As per the vision and mandate of CCRF, the Microscopy Facility is also committed to training researchers and making them aware of the latest trends in microscopy and imaging techniques. Along this line, webinars, workshops and research talks will be conducted regularly. The users are encouraged to talk, discuss, and seek help in designing their experiments with the personnel in the facility. We look forward to seeing you with your samples at our microscopy facility.
