Microscopy Facility
Within the School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences, we have a number of microscopes available to support research, providing students and academic staff with access to high quality microscopy systems.
DeltaVision Ultra High Resolution Microscopes
Our DeltaVision Ultra High Resolution machines allow high-resolution epi-flourescent imaging in both fixed cell and live cell settings. We have one DeltaVision Elite microscope and one DeltaVision Core microscope which allows cutting-edge imaging settings.
The machines are equipped with both air and oil objectives and allow FRET and FRAP measurements.
In order to access the DeltaVision Elite microscope, please contact Dr Fabrice Caudron at f.caudron@qmul.ac.uk
If you would like to use the DeltaVision Core microscope, please contact Professor Viji Draviam at v.draviam@qmul.ac.uk
Leica Microscopes
Room 6.16 in Queen Mary's G.E.Fogg Building houses several Leica microscope systems for bright field and fluorescent imaging. DIC imaging set up is available on two microscopes.
Microscope System One
A Leica DMRA2 upright epifluorescent microscope with colour QIClick camera. Differential interference contrast (DIC) imaging for unstained samples.
Fluorescent light source CoolLED pE-300white White light Fluorescent Illumination System
For image acquisition Velocity 6.3.1 software is available on an Apple computer.
Objectives: 1.6x, 5x, 10x, 20x, 40x, 40x oil, 100xoil, plus additional multiplying magnification at x1.25 or x 1.6.
| Filter | Excitation Range | Excitation Filter | Diachromatic Mirror | Suppression Filter |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| L5 527/30 | Blue | PB 480/40 | 505 | BP |
| N3 600/40 | Green | PB 546/12 | 565 | BP |
| A4 470/40 | UV | PB 360/40 | 400 | BP |
Microscope System Two
A Leica DMRA2 upright epifluorescent microscope with monochrome Hamamatsu Orca-ER camera.
Differential interference contrast imaging for unstained samples.
Fluorescent light source CoolLED pE-300white White light Fluorescent Illumination System.
For image acquisition Volocity software is available on an Apple computer.
Objectives: 2.5x, 10x, 40x, 40x oil, 63x (water), 100x oil, plus additional multiplying magnification at x 1.25 or x 1.6.
| Filter | Excitation Range | Excitation Filter | Diachromatic Mirror | Suppression Filter |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| L5 527/30 | Blue | PB 480/40 | 505 | BP |
| N3 600/40 | Green | PB 546/12 | 565 | BP |
| A4 470/40 | UV | PB 360/40 | 400 | BP |
Microscope System Three
Leica DMIL inverted microscope and Leica S8APO dissecting microscope with shared Leica DFC420 C colour camera.
Image acquisition is available using Leica Application Suite 2.8.1 on a Dell computer.
Fluorescent light source Leica EL 6000 unit.
Image Processing Software
Apple iMac computer with Imaris software (version 7.6.5) and ImageJ software for image processing and analysing software.
SBBS Confocal Microscope Facility
Image: Leica STELLARIS 8 Confocal Microscope
The Facility is located in the Joseph Priestley Building and it houses a Leica STELLARIS 8 confocal microscope with FLIM and DLS modalities. The SBBS Confocal Microscope Facility was established in 2009 and in 2023 joint funding from BBSRC (BB/W019698/1) and QMUL enabled upgrading of the confocal microscope with a new system.
STELLARIS 8 FALCON is a fully integrated solution for Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging (FLIM) that enables video-rate lifetime imaging for rapid kinetic studies in live cells. FLIM measures the fluorescence decay lifetime of fluorophores on picosecond-to-nanosecond timescales. It is ideal for quantitative Förster Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET) measurements of protein-protein interactions, and can also help distinguish between different fluorophores with similar emission spectra. Software wizards for FRAP and FRET are available.
STELLARIS 8 Digital LightSheet (DLS) unites confocal and light sheet microscopy in one system.
TauSense uses fluorescence lifetime to provide a measure of contrast (TauContrast) that is independent from fluorescent intensity. The TauSense imaging tools include TauContrast, TauGating which uses differences in average photon arrival time to remove unwanted background, and TauSeparation for multiplexing using differences in fluorescence lifetime.
The LIGHTNING module allows for super-resolution microscopy.
Excitation is provided by a selection of diode and solid-state lasers and Leica’s supercontinuum White Light Laser (WLL), tuneable from 440-760nm and combined with an Acousto-Optical Beam Splitter (AOBS®) allowing up to 8 simultaneous laser lines.
Four HyD S and one HyD X power detectors provide high sensitivity across a broad spectral range. The HyD X in Position 3 is the most sensitive, and is specialised for FLIM and Fluorescence Correlation Spectroscopy.
An OKO Lab Microscope cage incubator maintains samples at stable temperatures from 23 to 450C. The inverted configuration of the Leica DMI 8 microscope enables imaging of samples immersed in open wells.
Lasers available:
- Diode laser 405
- Diode laser 638 nm
- Solid state laser 488nm
- DP solid state laser 561 nm
- White light laser: 440nm-790 nm
Objectives available:
- HC PL FLUOTAR 2.5x/0.07 DRY
- HC PL APO CS2 10x /0.40 DRY
- HC PL APO CS2 20x /0.75 DRY
- HC PL APO CS2 40x/1.30 OIL
- HC PL APO CS2 63x/1.40 OIL
- HC PL APO CS 63x/1.30 GLYCEROL
Imaging cell components in the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp PCC6803. Left: Thylakoid membranes in red and mRNA encoding Photosystem I subunits in green. Right: Type IV pili imaged with AlexaFluor-maleimide labelling. Scale-bars are 2 microns. Credits: Moontaha Mahbub/Shylaja Mohandass.
Image Processing Software
Facility users have access to Dell computer with Imaris (version 10.0) image processing and analysing software; the package includes ImarisCore, ImarisColoc and MeasurementPro.
Contact
Training in use of the Leica and Confocal microscopes, including the completion of an induction session provided by the facility manager, is required before new users can work independently in the facility. Please contact Michaela Egertova on 0207 8826664 or email m.egertova@qmul.ac.uk to arrange.