Mission, Goals, Capabilities
Announcements
January 2023: We will be formalizing our image analysis training soon! Please complete the survey below to let us know what workflows matter to your research.
2022 recap: The BISR updated our portfolio last year to include a new live-cell widefield microscope and updated culture-screening station. We also updated our overnight pricing structure to better accomodate long-term imaging sessions. To learn more about how these changes might benefit your research, contact our team.
The goal of the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center Bioimaging Shared Resource is to advance the scientific research programs of the Cancer Center by providing SKCC investigators powerful, reliable, and readily accessible light microscopy. The Bioimaging Shared Resource provides a state of the art STED (stimulated emission depletion) super-resolution system, galvo and resonnat laser point-scanning confocals, spinning disk confocal, and TIRF (total internal refection fluorescence) modalities. The staff provides in-house training on all instruments.
Major Equipment
Leica SP8 Laser Scanning Confocal with tau-STED
- Leica DMi8 inverted microscope
- Motorized XY and Z-focus drives with Adaptive Focus Control
- Galvo-Z stage for high speed Z-stacks
- Objectives: 10x, 40x oil, 63x oil, 100x oil; 93x glycerol
- SP8 Laser Scanning Confocal with Galvo and Resonant modes
- Five (5) detector array with fully tunable emission bands (3HyD + 2MAL PMTS)
- White Light Laser for tunable excitation (470-670nm)
- Dedicated UV (405nm) excitation line
- Argon Laser for with dedicated excitation lines (458, 488, 514 nm)
- STED 3X Super-Resolution system with tau-STED capability
- Three (3) STED depletion lasers (592, 660, and 775 nm)
- Transmitted light detection with DIC
- LASX Imaging Software with FALCON toolset
- Full cage environmental chamber
- Anti-vibration isolation table
Nikon A1R Laser Scanning Confocal
- Nikon TiE inverted microscope
- Motorzied XY stage and Z-focus drive with Perfect Focus System
- Piezo Z drive for high speed Z-stacks
- A1R scan head with hybrid scanner
- High Resolution Galvo + High Speed Resonant (full FOV)
- Four (4) excitation lasers lines (405, 488, 561, and 640 nm)
- Four (4) channel DU-4 detector (2 GaAsP + 2 MAL PMTs)
- DU-S Spectral detector with linear unmixing capabilities
- Transmitted light detection with DIC
- Objectives: 4x, 10x, 20x, 40x air, 40x oil, 60x oil and 100x oil
- Anti-vibration isolation table
- Tokai-Hit stage top incubation for long timelapse of live samples
- NIS-Elements C software for multi-dimensional experiment acquisition and analysis
Nikon C2 Laser Scanning Confocal
- Nikon TiE inverted microscope
- Motorzied XY stage and Z-focus drive
- C2 Scan Head for high resolution confocal images
- Three (3) channel DU-3 detector with four channel detection capability
- Four (4) excitation laser lines (405, 488, 561, and 640 nm)
- Transmitted light detection with DIC
- Objectives: 20x, 40x oil, and 60x oil
- Anti-vibration isolation table
- NIS-Elements C software for multi-dimensional experiment acquisition and analysis
TIRF & Spinning Disk Microscopy
- Nikon TiE inverted microscope
- Motorized XY stage (Ludl) and Z focus drive with Perfect Focus System
- Piezo Z drive for fast Z stacks
- 100x/1.49 NA TIRF objective
- Motorized, Dual-Channel TIRF
- Nikon TIRF E Motorized Illuminator
- Andor Ion X3 EM-CCD camera
- Dual-view2 camera splitter with Green/Red emission set
- Dual Channel Spinning Disk Confocal
- Yokogawa CSU-X1 SDC
- Hamamatsu Fusion sCMOS camera
- Gemini camera splitter with Green/Red emission set
- Andor FRAPPA unit for photobleaching and photoactivation
- Light Sources
- Andor laser launch with four (4) excitation laser lines (405, 488, 561 and 640 nm - 100mW each)
- Sutter Lambda DG4-Plus illuminator
- Halogen transmitted light with DIC
- MetaMorph Premier image acquisition and analysis software
- Okolab stage-top incubator (35 mm dishes, 6-well plates, and 1" x 3" chamber slides)
- Anti-vibration air table
DeltaVision Ultra Widefield+
- Integrated Olympus stand and optics
- Motorized XY stage and Z focus drive with Ultimate Focus
- High Speed Seven(7) LED illumination
- High Speed/Low Noise PCO Edge sCMOS camera
- Full incubation enclosure for Live Cell Imaging
- Integrated Airtable
- 4x, 10x, 20x, 40x oil, 60x oil, 100x oil Objectives
- Acquire Ultra acquisition software
- Softworx viewing and manipulation software
- Deconvolution available for widefield processing
Services
- Two point-scanning laser confocal microscopes: (Nikon A1R+) with ultrafast resonant scanning technology and high resolution galvano scanners allowing for high resolution imaging of intracellular dynamic processes. (Nikon C2+) ideal for initial examination of fixed specimens with thicknesses up to several hundred microns.
- FLIM-Assisted STED (Leica SP8 tau-STED) for super-resolution imaging of up to three (3) colors.
- A spinning disk confocal/TIRF microscope (TIRF Microscope) specialized for short-term high-speed observation of live cells, particularly of the cell-substrate interface region.
- Widefield scanning system (DeltaVision Ultra) with live cell incubation chamber and high speed, seven (7) color support. System-optimized deconvolution included
- Widefield screening inverted microscope (TE2000).
Mercury Free Microscopy Initiative
Fluorescence microscopy requires the use of intense illumination at specific wavelengths, traditionally in the visible spectrum. For decades, this illumination relied on mercury based lamps, which had relatively short lifespans and unreliable intensities. With the introduction of LED-based light sources, fluorescence research no longer needs to rely on these outdated, costly, and environmentally hazardous mercury sources. The BISF is seeking to remove and replace all mercury sources on campus with their LED counterparts, but it starts with knowing more about the mercury footprint at Jefferson. If your lab works with fluorescent microsopes, please fill out the survey below.
BioImaging Analysis
Light microscopy has changed the way data are collected, from the early days of modeln visualization and illustration to database mining massive data sets for trends. The inherent data within these images is extracted, measured, and comapred through quantitative image analysis. This is an aspect to modern microscopy that we at the BISF would like grow in our offerings. To help us learn about your lab's analysis methods and needs, please fill out the survey below.
Imaging Journal Club
Effective presentation of microscopy data is critical part of digital imaing. The BioImaging Shared Resource would like to explore this in an informal journal club. To learn more and be added to our email list, please fill out the survey below.