The proposed instrument cluster will be used by investigators studying animal models of ocular disease and visual function at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and will greatly benefit a significant number of established, NIH-and Non-funded research groups spanning a range of disciplines. The involved research projects have a great direct relevance to public health as they target important causes of vision loss in the human population, spanning diseases starting in infancy to diseases commonly encountered in the aging population. Four instruments are being requested: (1) A Zeiss OMPI Lumera Operating Microscope and Image capture system (Zeiss OMPI Lumera) for ocular surgical procedures in animals, (2) a Zeiss PALM Microbeam Laser Capture Microdissection (LCM) system, (3) a Logos Biosystems X-Clarity Tissue Processor (X-Clarity), and (4) a Diagnosys Celeris Rodent ERG System (ERG). These four instruments will become part of our long-standing Vision Research Core on campus and will be used by vision researchers across the campus in multiple schools and departments. They will be used in a broad range of basic and translational studies involving retinal function and retinal degenerative diseases, basic and translational studies in glaucoma, retinal vascular diseases, inherited ocular diseases of various types, cell and gene therapy delivery studies, ocular inflammation, and ocular infections. Thus, the research of multiple investigators in a broad range of areas will be positively impacted by the acquisition of these four instruments.
The four instruments requested in this application 1) replace an aging no longer serviceable instrument, 2) enhance the analysis of retinal function, and 3) Add new instrumentation to expand the capabilities of the UW-Madison Vision Research Core to support vision research using animals. Ultimately, the acquisition of these instruments will support the mission of the NIH by reducing the considerable burden that is associated with ocular disease and visual disability in the human population.
