Confocal Spinning-Disc Microscope

• Subject Area: Basic Research in Biology and Medicine
• Term: Funded in 2024
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 545038389

We are applying for a high-resolution spinning disk microscope that enables long-term visualization of cell dynamics and subcellular processes in tissues in the Department "Cell Biology of the Skin" under the direction of the main applicant. To understand how self-renewing tissues form and maintain themselves under physiological and pathological conditions, it is important to monitor and quantify the behavior of cells and cellular processes over different time periods within a tissue under these conditions on a large scale. The proposed instrument therefore represents a key instrument for the applicant and the department and is mainly used for research. The applicant is an internationally recognized researcher in the field of epithelial barrier biology and regeneration whose goal is to understand how cells within regenerative epithelia integrate physical forces and biochemical signals to coordinate fate decisions within the tissue. The focus here is on the skin epidermis. A central aspect of research within the department is the analysis of cell, adhesion and cytoskeletal dynamics in in vivo tissues as well as 2D and 3D organoids over longer periods of time, between 6 hours and several days. The long imaging times combined with the daily intensive use of this instrument make it impossible to position the instrument within the central imaging facility as it has little or no accessibility to other users. Research in the department is supported by several DFG projects, including a French-German ANR-DFG cooperation project, as well as within the framework of a FOR and an RTG. The microscope will also be of essential importance for future projects, whose grants are currently being reviewed. The application will be crucial for the lead applicant and other members of the department to remain internationally competitive in the field of epithelial barrier regeneration in health and disease. The instrument is also used to train advanced medical, bachelor's and master's students who work alternately in the laboratory to train them in sophisticated imaging techniques and quantitative image analysis. If necessary, other users of the CECAD research center and other institutes at the University Hospital of Cologne and the University of Cologne will use this instrument in collaboration to address specific questions in their research.

• DFG Programme: Major Research Instrumentation
• Major Instrumentation: Konfokales Spinning-Disk Mikroskop
• Instrumentation Group: 5090 Spezialmikroskope
• Applicant Institution: Universität zu Köln
• Leader: Professorin Dr. Carien Niessen