Integrated Confocal/Multiphoton Imaging System

• Subject Area: Molecular Chemistry
• Term: Funded in 2020
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 434558229

The Interfaculty Institute of Biochemistry (IFIB) is an integrative research center covering all dimensions of modern biochemical research from atoms via molecules and cells to organisms. Currently, the IFIB comprises nine tenured professorships and several independent research groups exploiting a variety of state-of-the-art imaging setups. In coordination with the transfer to the new IFIB building beginning of 2020, these resources will be pooled into a common IFIB imaging section. This section will become the central structure of the newly developing IFIB core research area “Visualization of biochemical processes: from molecules to cells to organisms”. To maintain and possibly further enhance the outstanding research at our institute, we need an integrated super-resolution/multiphoton imaging system for advanced light microscopy at the subcellular, cellular and tissue level, as well as in living animals. This microscope must offer a wide range of imaging techniques fitting to the diversity of the working groups at the IFIB. The proposed instrument combines an inverted and an upright stand and is equipped with multiple VIS-laser lines and a tuneable, femtosecond 2 photon laser (shared between the two systems). Furthermore, the system has to provide environmental control to accommodate living samples (incubation chamber), and allow fast fluorescence image acquisition below a resolution of 200 nm. Additionally, the system has to be equipped with hard- and software for quantitative imaging, ratiometric FRET, FLIM-FRET, time-lapse acquisition of multiple fluorescent proteins, and fluorescence correlation spectroscopy. The instrument will be shared by at least seven IFIB groups to full capacity (2000 h per year). This demand cannot be fulfilled by existing microscopy infrastructure. The new microscope will be essential to conduct our diverse research projects funded by the DFG, ERC, BMBF and other institutions.

• DFG Programme: Major Research Instrumentation
• Major Instrumentation: Integriertes Konfokales/Multiphotonen Imaging System
• Instrumentation Group: 5090 Spezialmikroskope
• Applicant Institution: Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen
• Leader: Professor Dr. Robert Feil