Established in 1973, the Central Microscopy Research Facility (CMRF) is co-administered by the Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center (HCCC) and the UI Office of the Vice President for Research. The CMRF is directed by Randy Nessler, who has 29 years of experience in this facility, and brings this tremendous experience and expertise to serve the research needs of HCCC investigators. The CMRF provides services that include instrumentation, training, guidance and supplies for performance of light, confocal, and electron microscopy of many different types. Cancer researchers receive the following services: specialized staining and embedding of samples, negative staining, metallic coating, autoradiography, cryo-fixation, enzyme and immuno- cytochemistry, morphometry, stereology, X-ray microanalysis and microdissection. The facility is accessible 7 days a week, 24 hours/day. The facility houses approximately $10M in equipment in 3 campus sites. The main site is centrally located in the Eckstein Medical Research Building of the Carver College of Medicine (CCOM) campus. This and a second CCOM site in the Bowen Science Building (BSB) are easily accessible to HCCC researchers. Instrument acquisition is driven by the research needs, with HCCC members playing important roles in the procurement of new technology to be housed within the CMRF. Recent acquisitions include a Leica LMD7000, and a Leica SP8 laser scanning confocal with Stimulated Emission Depletion (STED). In addition, a National Institute of Health S10 grant for the acquisition of Spectral Instruments Imaging, Inc. Spectral LagoX is being written for the May 2015 call for proposals. The LagoX will replace the IVIS200 live animal imaging system, which is heavily utilized by HCCC researchers to track tumorigenesis in murine models. To realize the full potential of newly acquired instrumentation, the research staff of the CMRF undergo constant training. The 6 full-time staff members have a combined total of +90 years of microscopy research experience, with many years devoted to cancer research. During 2014, 66 HCCC members from all HCCC programs utilized the CMRF. The major goal of the CMRF is to continue to provide high-quality microscopy services to cancer research projects, ensuring that HCCC investigators have access to the latest instrumentation and techniques to enhance their work.
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