Lightsheet microscopy offers distinct capability advantages for the imaging of live intact biological samples and optically cleared fixed samples. Lightsheet offers rapid optical sectioning with little photo damage so is ideal for in toto time-lapse imaging of biological model systems such as zebrafish, drosophila and many marine organisms. The ability to rapidly image medium-scale objects is also well matched to optical clearing methods. Availability of lightsheet imaging would enable new aspects of investigation in many NIH funded projects that currently use a variety of imaging methods that are limited in some regards. The availability of the capabilities of lightsheet microscopy would enhance many projects investigating fundamental developmental biology and impacting a variety of disease areas. The instrument would be housed in a large core facility serving the entire research base at Duke University and Medical School where the impact and use would be widespread. The user group have experience with this form of imaging at other institutions and general high-levels of imaging expertise so are well placed to immediately and effectively implement this method for an important array of basic research.
The requested system would allow a range of imaging for basic biomedical research topics. Using advanced microscopy to visualize model organisms such as fish and fruit flies helps to understand these processes in humans and how they go wrong in disease.
