The past year has been very busy for the NIAMS Imaging Facility. Publications that include microscopy work carried out in the Light Imaging Section have been published in Blood, Immunology, Human Molecular Genetics and other high-quality scientific journals. These publications expand our knowledge of autoimmunity, muscle, and skin diseases. Researchers from 14 Sections, Laboratories, or Branches have used the Facility, 35 researchers have been trained to use one or more of the instruments and one presentation on the Bases of Microscopy & Ethical Imaging was offered to postdoctoral and postbac trainees. As every year, LIS staff have assisted Facility users to apply advanced microscopy techniques, to improve the quality of their images, to quantitate the images, and to prepare these images for publication. LIS staff have also evaluated new instruments that Facility users are interested in and worked on the replacement of out-of-date equipment. A Leica SP8 confocal microscope has replaced the Leica SP5 which dated from 2007. The SP8, besides producing high quality images is equipped with the Lightning software which offers super-resolution imaging. Its white light laser provides great flexibility in the choice of fluorophores to image. We have also recently replaced our workstation computer with a new, faster PC. The workstation drives our Incucytes and allows analysis of Incucyte data. It is also loaded with the LASX software that drives the Leica SP8 and allows analysis of the confocal images away from the instrument itself. It will also allow 3D image analysis with the Imaris software and post-acquisition deconvolution of confocal images. All our instruments have been in demand, including the Leica SP8 and the Zeiss 780 confocal microscopes, the Hamamatsu laser scanner, the Essen Zoom and S3 Incucytes, the Leica TIRF, and the Leica upright DM6000 and inverted DMI6000 fluorescence microscopes. The SP8 has been used in two-photon mode to collect Second Harmonic Generation images from muscle and teeth. There has been a sharp increase this year in the demand for slide scanning. More than 3,100 slides have been scanned in a year for scientists in 8 Laboratories/Branches working on arthritis, skin, and muscle diseases. The scanner is the only instrument which Light Imaging Section staff is running for the users who get direct access to their images stored on a shared server. All slides have been scanned by Ms. Kenea.
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