Microscopic Imaging Core Facility
Welcome
Welcome to the web page of the Microscopic Imaging Core Facility of the Biology Department at Wake Forest University. Here you can learn about our facility, our image capture and analysis capabilities, find instructions for various pieces of equipment, find technical documentation, and local users may reserve time on a system using our web-based calendar.
Attention non-WFU faculty and students:
The Microscopic Imaging Core Facility provides resources and training for educational and outreach purposes to faculty from surrounding institutions for free. If you are interested in using WFU resources to conduct imaging experiments or you would like to have the Facility Director come and speak to a group at your institution, please contact Dr. Anita McCauley.
About Us
Mission Statement.
The mission of the Microscopic Imaging Core Facility is to provide microscopic instruments and training that enhances the research and educational opportunities in the Biology department at Wake Forest University.
Philosophy.
Humans are extremely visually-oriented creatures who rely on sight to navigate, understand, and interact with the world. This is especially true in the realm of scientific inquiry. Whether the field is molecular biology or ecology, image instrumentation is critical to conducting successful research projects. Images are the medium for data collection, archiving, analysis, and dissemination. In the Biology department at Wake Forest University, imaging is a central component of both education and research for faculty, graduate students, and undergraduates. The importance of imaging is illustrated by the presence of a core facility dedicated to microscopic and macroscopic imaging and the incorporation of imaging methodologies into the curriculum of students. As a core facility, the equipment located here is available for the research needs of faculty and students in the Biology department, as well as throughout the university and the surrounding academic community.
Description.
The Microscopic Imaging Core Facility is supported by the Biology Department, and is located in the new wing of Winston Hall in Room 002. The facility is an approximately 670 sq. ft. suite consisting of five rooms. There are four rooms dedicated to a Zeiss Axioplan upright microscope, Zeiss AxioObserver inverted microscope, Leica MZ16 FA stereomicroscope, and an Amray 1810 scanning electron microscope, respectively. Additionally, there is a large, central room containing high performance computer workstations dedicated to image processing and analysis, an Olympus SZX 12 stereomicroscope for still and video image capture, and bench space and equipment for sample preparation, including a rotary microtome, vibratome, sputter coater, and critical point dryer. A document describing these imaging systems is available in PDF format. Consistent with the university’s network infrastructure, the Facility offers both wired and wireless network access. A dedicated server is available for storing all microscopy-related files.
The Reynolda Campus Confocal Microscopy Center is located in the new wing of Winston Hall in Room 009. This newly renovated room contains cabinets and bench space for sample preparation, a teaching and conference area, and an interior room housing the confocal microscope. Through funds from a NSF MRI award, we have recently purchased a Zeiss LSM 710 confocal microscope. This instrument will be available to users by August 2008. Details regarding this microscope and the new Confocal Microscopy Center can be found at http://itg.wfu.edu/confocalit.
News
The New Zeiss 710 Confocal Microscope is Here.
The Zeiss LSM 710 arrived in August 2008. Following a week of installation and training, faculty and students began using the instrument. For information about this imaging tool, go to the Confocal Microscope webpage.
Recent Publications.
Hector, CE, Bretz, CA, Zhao, Y, Johnson, EC. 2009. Functional Differences Between Two CRF-Related Diuretic Hormone Receptors in Drosophila. J. Exp. Biol., in press.
Lewis, DR and Muday, GK (2009) Measurement of auxin transport in Arabidopsis thaliana Nature Protocols: 4: 437-451.
Sukumar, P, Edwards, KS, Rahman, A, Mattox, C, and DeLong, A, and Muday, GK (2009) PINOID kinase regulates root gravitropism through modulation of PIN2-dependent basipetal auxin transport in Arabidopsis thaliana. Plant Physiol: 150: 722-735.
Browne C, Tobin JR, Voytko ML. 2009. Effects of two years of conjugated equine estrogens on cholinergic neurons in young and middle-aged monkeys. Brain Research 1264:13-23.
McCauley AK, Frank ST, Godwin DW. (2009) Brainstem Nitrergic Innervation of the Mouse Visual Thalamus. Brain Research 1278: 34-49.
Johnson, E.C., F.W. Tift, A.K. McCauley, L. Liu, and G. Roman. 2008. Functional characterization of kurtz, a Drosophila non-visual arrestin, reveals conservation of GPCR desensitization mechanisms. Insect Biochem. Mol. Biol. 38:1016-1022.
Negi, S, Ivanchenko, MG, and Muday, GK (2008) Ethylene regulates lateral root formation and auxin transport in Arabidopsis thaliana. Plant J. 55: 175-187.
Hughes NM, Morley CB, and Smith WK. 2007. The coordination of anthocyanin decline and photosynthetic maturation in developing leaves of three deciduous tree species. New Phytologist (in press).
Hughes NM, Smith WK. 2007. Attenuation of incident light in Galax urceolata (Diapensiaceae): concerted influence of adaxial and abaxial anthocyanic layers on photoprotection. American Journal of Botany 94: 784-790.
Muday GK, Brady SR, Argueso C, Deručre J, Kieber JJ, and DeLong A. (2006) RCN1-regulated phosphatase activity and EIN2 modulate hypocotyl gravitropism by a mechanism that does not require ethylene signaling. Plant Physiology: 141: In press
Buer CS, Sukumar P, and Muday GK. (2006) Ethylene induced flavonoid synthesis modulates root gravitropism. Plant Physiology: 140: 1384-1396
Buer CS, and Muday GK. (2004) The transparent testa4 mutation prevents flavonoid synthesis and alters auxin transport and the response of Arabidopsis roots to gravity and light. Plant Cell, 16: 1191-1205.
Sun H, Basu S, Brady SR, Luciano RL, and Muday GK. (2004) Interactions between auxin transport and the actin cytoskeleton in developmental polarity of Fucus distichus embryos in response to light and gravity. Plant Physiology: 135: 266-278
Rogers-Lowery, C. L., R. V. Dimock, Jr. and R. E. Kuhn. 2006. Antibody response of bluegill sunfish during development of acquired resistance against the larvae of the freshwater mussel Utterbackia imbecillis Develop. & Comp. Immunol. (Available online at Science Direct, 16 June)
Dodd, B. J., M. C. Barnhart, C. L. Rogers-Lowery, T. B. Fobian, R. V. Dimock, Jr., 2006. Persistence of host response against glochidia larvae in Micropterus salmoides. Fish & Shellfish Immunol. (Available online at Science Direct, 6 March).
Rogers-Lowery, C. L. and R. V. Dimock, Jr. 2006. Encapsulation of attached ectoparasitic larvae of freshwater mussels by epithelial tissue on fins of naive and resistant host fish. Biol. Bull. 210: 51-63.
Dodd, B. J., M. C. Barnhart, C. L. Rogers-Lowery, T. B. Fobian, R. V. Dimock, Jr., (2005) Cross-resistance of largemouth bass to glochidia of unionid mussels. J. Parasitol. 91: 1064-1072
Recent Grants.
Multi-User Biological Equipment and Instrumentation Grant, DBI-0500702, NSF, “A Stereomicroscope Imaging System for Faculty-Student Research in the Microscopy Core Facility at Wake Forest University”, 05/01/2005-04/30/2008
The Cannon Foundation, Inc., "Enhancement of Imaging Capabilities", 03/2006 - 03/2007
Major Research Instrumentation Grant, DBI-0722926, NSF, "MRI: Acquisition of a Laser Scanning Confocal Microscope for Research and Training in Biology and Physics at Wake Forest University", 08/01/2007-07/31/2009
User Information
Facility Director: The facility is run by the Director of Microscopy, Dr. Anita McCauley, whose office is located in Winston Hall, Room 016.
User Guidelines.To ensure the proper use, care, and maintenance of the instruments in the Microscopy Core Facility, users are asked to comply with a series of guidelines that focus on access and proper use of facility instruments and supplies. These User Guidelines are available in PDF format. Users must complete a training session with the Facility Director before using any equipment. Most training sessions take about one hour.
Users will be required to complete a Tri-Annual Report Δ at the end of each semester that will summarize microscope usage, relate that work to funded projects, and list any publications or presentations resulting from microscopy facility resources.
Scheduling Time.Users may reserve time on a microscope or computer station using web-based calendars.
Click Here to Schedule an Appointment
(note: calendar is viewable on campus only)
