NATIONAL CANCER INSTITUTE - CANCER.GOV

Contact Information

Primary Contact

Ross Lake
Manager

Location

Building 37, Room 1066
Bethesda, MD 20892

Overview

LCBG Microscopy Core Facility offers imaging technologies and training. The facility has established instrumentation for for 2D and 3D imaging of both fixed and living specimens. Equipment include: Zeiss AxioObserver.Z1 epifluorescent microscope, Zeiss AxioScan.Z1 slide scanner, Zeiss LSM780 confocal microscope, and Nikon Eclipse Ti2 widefield microscope.

Major Instrumentation

Zeiss AxioObserver.Z1 epifluorescent microscope

  • 2D and 3D imaging of live and fixed specimens
  • Phase contrast, DIC, and multi-fluorescence imaging
  • Equipped with Hamamatsu OrcaFlash4.0 camera and Zen Blue software

Zeiss Axio Scan.Z1 slide scanning microscope

  • Fully automated slide scanner able to create brightfield and fluorescent virtual slides
  • Equipped with a Colibri 7 LED source with a wide range of dye combinations available
  • Objectives available include 2.5x, 5x, 10x, 20x, and 40x
  • Equipped with Hamamatsu OrcaFlash 4.0 camera
  • Images are acquired and analyzed using Carl Zeiss Zen 2.3 software

Zeiss LSM 780 confocal microscope

  • Equipped with a stage top environmental chamber for live cell imaging
  • 7 laser lines (405nm, 458nm, 488nm, 514nm, 543/561nm, 594nm & 633nm)
  • Enables 3D reconstruction and animation of photo sections generated from thick specimensvvvv
  • Fluorescence Recovery After Photobleaching (FRAP) and Fluorescence Loss
    in Photobleach (FLIP) to study dynamics of molecular mobility
  • Examine molecular interactions using Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET)

Nikon Eclipse Ti2 widefield microscope

  • Optimized for single molecule RNAFISH imaging
  • Equipped with a Photometrics Prime BSI sCMOS camera and Lumencore SOLA SE 365 FISH light engine
  • Motorized scanning stage with Z piezo insert for fast Z and multi position time lapse imaging
  • Objectives available include a 10x, 20x, 40x Oil, 60x Oil, 100x Oil
  • Filter cubes are narrow band optimized for RNAFISH imaging using DAPI, FITC, Gold, Red, and Cy5

  • Images are acquired and analyzed using Nikon Elements software

User Guidelines

The Core is open to all NCI intramural researchers, although LCBG scientists have priority use of the equipment in the facility. Researchers from other institutes are also welcome to use the facility. Facility staff provides individual training for all new users. Unless special arrangements are made, the equipment in the facility may be used Monday to Friday, 10:00 am – 6:00 pm

Keywords

2D and 3D imaging of live and fixed specimensZeiss AxioObserver.Z1 Epifluorescent MicroscopeZeiss LSM 780automated slide scannerconfocal microscopyImaging and Microscopylive cell imagingmicroscopynci-coreoptical microscopy