Pictured is a single tomographic high-resolution view of a high- pressure frozen arctic algae cell created using an electron microscope. EM Tomography allows full 360 degree 3D views of cells. The endoplasmic reticulum (light blue), Golgi apparatus (rainbow) and vesicles (purple spheres) are organelles involved in secretion in this cell. See video below. Algal samples provided by Tom Hanson and TEM tomograms created and rendered by Shannon Modla and Jeff Caplan, Bio-Imaging Center.

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Pictured are, from left, Kim Rensing of Leica Microsystems, Eduardo Alves of the Federal University of Lavras, Brazil, and Sandra Mathioni and Kirk Czymmek, both of the University of Delaware.

2:04 p.m., May 12, 2010----Cells can take minutes, or even hours, to die -- when preserved using standard chemical fixation and for decades this was the best available method to researchers. However, modern cryogenic methods of preservation nearly instantaneously stop all biological processes -- within milliseconds -- while maintaining the most life-like view of the cell.

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The beginning of April marked the first University-wide cryo-preservation workshop for students, University of Delaware professors, and investigators from DuPont Pioneer and Johns Hopkins University.

Hosted by the Delaware Biotechnology Institute's (DBI) Bio-Imaging Center, led by Kirk Czymmek, participants were able to test over $375,000 worth of microscopy-related instruments on loan from by Leica Microsystems, which also sponsored the workshop and coordinated outside speakers for the event.

“To conduct proper and efficient research, we need to avoid 'artifacts' which can lead to false or misleading representations of what is happening inside a cell,” said Czymmek, associate professor in UD's Department of Biological Sciences. “Cryotechniques provide the most life-like view of cells and are considered the gold-standard for rapidly immobilizing cells for microscopy. A workshop like this provides our students with the knowledge and hands-on experience to work with the best instrumentation available.”

A few of the technologies on hand during the three-day Cryo-Sample Preparation and Correlative LM-EM Workshop from April 6-8 were the HPM100 High Pressure Freezer, EMPACT High Pressure Freezer, the Grid Plunger and an automated Immuno-Gold Labeling System.

The freezers are able to rapidly freeze samples with liquid nitrogen, without changing the arrangement of molecules within the sample. Once samples are frozen -- tissues, cultured cells, plants, yeast, fungi and hydrogels -- they can be cut into very thin slices by a diamond and then viewed under a microscope. And because they are in their closest-to-natural state, scientists can gain a much better understanding of how cells and organisms work and respond to their environment.

“We routinely work with key institutions and labs because it benefits us all in terms of developing products and advancing research,” said Ann Korsen, director of sales and marketing for nanotechnology at Leica Microsystems.

Students were able to bring personal samples to the workshop to process, including plants, yeast and other fungi, bacteria, fruit fly embryos, and mammalian tissue.

“DBI's Bio-Imaging Center and team have been instrumental in the progression of my research interests by incorporating state-of-the-art technology and instrumentation, novel microscopic techniques, and unparalleled assistance from multiple institutions and collaborators,” said Carissa Young, a doctoral candidate in the Department of Chemical Engineering at UD.

As the University continues with its strategic plan to position UD as one of the best public institutions in America, the DBI Bio-Imaging Center is following along with vigor.

“It is an exciting time to be at the University of Delaware as it moves forward with its Path to Prominence^TM. To support the University's strategic plan, our researchers will need access to the same sophisticated technologies other leading institutions have in order to be competitive,” said Czymmek. “Technologies for examining cells at high-resolution are changing rapidly, and we hope to augment existing equipment at UD based on what we've learned during the workshop.”

Article by Laura Crozier