Upright confocal laser scanning microscope with incubator

• Subject Area: Materials Science
• Term: Funded in 2024
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 549192058

This proposal (Research Large-Scale Equipment Program according to Article 91b GG) concerns the initial procurement of an upright Confocal Laser Scanning Microscope (CLSM) with an incubator for research in materials and life sciences at Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU). At the internationally oriented Department of Materials Science (Chair Biomaterials) of FAU, the Boccaccini research group develops, among other things, ion-doped bioactive glasses for hard and soft tissue regeneration, modifies implant surfaces using various coating techniques, and produces cell-laden tissue constructs through the application of additive manufacturing processes in combination with bioinks. Furthermore, the Detsch research group deals with the localized printing of small cell quantities and the biophysical stimulation of bone cells. Here, flexible excitation wavelengths and detection ranges, as well as fluorescence lifetime, are of great importance for successful measurements. The requested equipment is mainly intended to investigate questions related to cell development processes on and in non-transparent biomaterials. Since these involve cell reactions to very complex, soft, and currently also thermosensitive biopolymers and surfaces or inorganic nanomaterials, an extremely flexible CLSM system is required. The acquisition of material parameters, such as geometric profiles (roughness), 2D and 3D texture analyses, and spatial analyses of pores using suitable measurement modules, is also important here. Additionally, especially for printed tissue analogues, the penetration depth of the laser used and the detection of fluorescence lifetime play a major role in, for example, analyzing the 3D distribution of stem cells in the hydrogel. Collaborating with the research groups of Prof. Anja Boßerhoff (Chair of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine), Prof. Silvia Budday (Chair of Continuum Mechanics with a focus on Biomechanics), and Prof. Oliver Friedrich (Chair of Medical Biotechnology), further scientific questions such as tumour development, soft matrices for biomechanical evaluation, and cell physiological investigations will be addressed with this microscope. The involvement of these researchers underscores the interdisciplinary nature of this proposal. CLSM technology offers many advantages for biomaterial science at the Erlangen site, as both material and biological aspects of a sample can be imaged jointly at high resolution, even for temperature-sensitive structures. Confocal laser scanning microscopy with optimal fluorescence imaging and reflection mode provides an essential technique for analyzing cellular and subcellular processes in eukaryotes and even prokaryotes in the presence of different biomaterials. Moreover, dense or porous materials can also be spatially and temporally analyzed regarding surface topographies, microstructures, porosity, and even surface defects.

• DFG Programme: Major Research Instrumentation
• Major Instrumentation: Aufrechtes Konfokales Laser Scanning Mikroskop mit Inkubator
• Instrumentation Group: 5090 Spezialmikroskope
• Applicant Institution: Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg
• Leader: Professor Dr.-Ing. Aldo Boccaccini