An award is made to the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) to acquire a high-resolution, fast, laser-scanning confocal microscope. This award will allow critical problems in biophysics, neuroscience, and bioengineering to be addressed, while substantially increasing the research and training capacity of the campus. In particular, this new instrumentation will provide scientists at UCSB with unprecedented abilities to measure the dynamic motions of microscale structures in biological and bioinspired materials. Undergraduate and graduate students will gain expertise in cutting edge technologies, imparting new scientific knowledge, developing new materials, and understanding human health. A partnership with the Wolf Museum of Exploration + Innovation (MOXI) will bring the discoveries enabled by this award to the public.
The fast-scanning, high-resolution confocal microscope with spectral detection capabilities (Leica TCS SP8x) will substantially modernize the Neuroscience Research Institute (NRI)/Molecular Cellular and Developmental Biology Microscopy Facility. The new instrument will transform the institutional research capabilities for collecting quantitative, high spatial and temporal resolution images in order to carry out NSF-funded research addressing diverse and critical research questions in developmental biology, quantitative biophysics, bio-inspired materials research, and neuroscience. These include investigations of: (1) intra- and inter-cellular interactions and the dynamics of morphogenesis and tissue remodeling; (2) human brain development using stem cell-derived cerebral organoids; (3)"smart" materials in which the mechanical properties can be dynamically controlled through responsive molecular architecture; (4) the dynamics of surface diffusion, convection and adhesion; and, (5) the molecular and biophysical mechanisms driving tunable iridescence. In addition to the immediate gains in speed and sensitivity, this project will provide for minor modifications to customize the new microscope and make it compatible with a wide range of customized biophysical tools, including a miniaturized surface forces apparatus (SFA), high-force magnetic tweezers devices, and a scanning probe microscopy system that combines imaging and multielectrode array technologies to map and manipulate neural tissues in culture. Additionally, the proposed instrumentation will be used in a variety of classroom, training, and outreach activities that will significantly enhance the education and mentorship of graduate and undergraduate students, and will bring diverse cohorts of students and experts to UCSB to perform research. A new partnership between the UCSB NRI and the Wolf Museum of Exploration + Innovation (MOXI) will engage the public in active learning about optics, light and imaging, while sharing the important discoveries and applications of the research enabled by this award. These activities will substantially expand the impact of this project beyond our campus, and will further strengthen UCSB's position as a leading institute in quantitative biology, neuroscience, biomaterials and bioengineering research and education.
