|
view all product images
|
Cell R & M
Cell R and Cell M are members of the Olympus Cell family, designed for the advanced demands of live cell imaging. They are modular imaging stations that support the IX2 and BX2 series of Olympus microscopes providing advanced precision and image quality expected from the Olympus range of microscopes.
LOOKING BEYOND THE IMAGE
Dynamic processes and structural characterisation in living cells
Cell R and Cell M are modular imaging stations that support the IX2 and BX2 series of Olympus microscopes. Their unique all-in-one Illumination Systems – MT10 and MT20 – respectively, allow fast wavelength switching and attenuation, having been specially designed to meet the experimental requirements for rapid image acquisition using highly sensitive digital cameras for a broad range of life science experiments. The Cell R is designed to capture fast events and has been optimised to image very fast processes in living cells, operating at about twice the speed of the Cell M. Cell R achieves this by incorporating a special control board, which synchronises all hardware modules including optional peripheral devices. It is functionally independent of the imaging computer, which ensures the highest accuracy in experiment timing.
The user-friendly software for both imaging stations is powerful and all-encompassing. It features an intuitive, graphical drag-and-drop interface, the easy to use ‘Experiment Manager’, to set up even the most complex experiments in a convenient and concise way.
INSIGHTS INTO THE SECRETS OF LIFE
Advanced applications in live cell imaging
Microscopy in bioscience has progressed from the purely structural characterisation of fixed cells towards the investigation of processes in living cells with recent advances in fluorescence technology. Static morphological observation can now be complemented by the characterisation of the 3-D architecture of cellular structures and the real-time investigation of dynamic molecular processes in living cells. Newly developed fluorescence methods such as TIRF and FRET microscopy or GFP labelling are pushing the frontiers and widening the scope of bio-imaging.
Multi-function all-in-one illumination system MT20
The MT20 contains a fast filter wheel (minimal switch 58 ms) with 8 positions and a fast attenuator with 14 grades of illumination intensity. The built-in shutter has the exceptional on/off time of 1 ms and basically eliminates off-acquisition photobleaching. Two types of light sources are optional: a high-stability 150W Xe arc burner or a very stable 150W Hg/Xe mixed gas arc burner. The light is coupled via a single quartz light fibre into the microscope.
|
|
Hyper-precision real-time experiment control
An additional independent plug-in CPU board ensures interrupt-free data uptake by the cell^R imaging computer during an experiment. Experiment control and sub-millisecond timing precision are maintained while changing hardware settings. Filter wheel, attenuator and shutter of the MT20 are optimally synchronised with the camera, an optional piezo Z-drive and other peripherals. All modules work in parallel.
|
|
Digital Cameras: high resolution and sensitivity
Besides the FV-II and the DP30BW several latest-generation interline transfer CCD models of reputable manufacturers are supported. For low-light acquisition electron multiplier CCD (EM-CCD) and back-thinned CCD cameras can be used.
|
|
cell^R imaging software for acquisition, documentation, processing, and analysis
The all-embracing platform offers a host of processing and analysis functions and several unique features: the Experiment Manager – an intuitive graphical interface for experiment planning, set-up and execution; Spectral Unmixing – a unique tool for colour resolution enhancement; a sophisticated, structured database for archiving and documentation.
|
|
Experiment Manager – intuitive graphical experiment planning, set-up and execution
This very easy to learn clearly structured interface allows an intuitive assembly of experiment plans based on drag&drop assembly of icons that represent simple commands, groups of commands or entire sub-experiments. Individual exposure times, attenuation values and ROIs can be set for each image acquisition command. Experiment plans are automatically stored together with the image data in the database.
|
|
Time-lapse Imaging
Dynamic processes such as cell growth, metabolic transport and signal transduction are monitored routinely nowadays. The duration of such processes may vary from the sub-second range to hours or even days. Consequently it may be necessary to take several images per second or just one image every couple of minutes.
Multi-colour and GFP Imaging
The development of a growing list of specific fluorochromes covering the entire colour range enables the scientist to image and distinguish different sub-cellular structures simultaneously within one experiment through the use of multiple staining. If this is combined with time-lapse acquisition, the illumination unit of the microscope must be able to switch quickly between excitation wavelengths.
|
|
Z-sectioning and Multi-dimensional Imaging
Microscopy is basically a two-dimensional observation technique while biological samples are three-dimensional. Therefore, in order to map the entire volume of the specimen, it can be imaged in layers by moving the focal plane in precise steps using a motorised Z-drive or a piezo-electric objective drive.
Ion Imaging / Ratio Imaging / Ca++ Imaging
The fluorescence behaviour of several dyes is dependent on the concentration of certain ions such as calcium (Fura-2) or on the pH value (BCECF). The detection, quantification and analysis of changes in fluorescence intensity are thus an indirect means to study important physiological processes.
FRET (Foerster Resonance Energy Transfer)
The measurement of fluorescence energy transfer from a fluorochrome molecule to an adjacent one can be used for the investigation of molecular interactions in cells. It requires the acquisition of images with different excitation and emission wavelengths and sophisticated correction algorithms.
TIRFM (Total Internal Reflection Fluorescence Microscopy)
Investigating surfaces without interference from background light can be carried out using Total Internal Reflection Fluorescence Microscopy. Laser light coupled together with the standard fluorescence excitation allows fast switching between TIRF and wide-field fluorescence applications and can even support simultaneous observation.
|
|
Hardware
|
Olympus microscopes BX50 -BX61, BX61WI, IX50-IX81 |
|
| |
CCD, EMCCD cameras, various models |
|
| |
Imaging Computer (latest generation PC) |
|
| |
|
|
Illumination system
|
MT20 |
|
| |
Short arc burners, |
150 W Xenon or Mercury-Xenon |
| |
8 Filter positions |
diameter 25 mm |
| |
Filter switch |
min. 58 ms (neighbouring positions) |
| |
Attenuation |
14 levels, 1% - 100% |
| |
Attenuation switch |
<58 ms |
| |
Shutter, on/off time |
1 ms |
| |
Operation |
all modules in parallel |
| |
|
|
Hardware control
|
Control board with additional CPU, independent from imaging PC |
Real-time Controller |
| |
Temporal resolution |
1 ms |
| |
Timing precision |
< 0.01 ms |
| |
Camera control |
trigger (level trigger if accepted by camera) |
| |
Peripheral device control via TTL pulses |
3 BNC connectors |
| |
Multi-task acquisition with hardware switch (z-position, exciter filter etc.), 50 ms exposure |
8 full frames/sec with parallel hardware switch |
| |
|
|
Experiment set-up and control
|
Graphical interface Experiment Manager |
|
| |
Drag-and-drop alignment of command icons |
|
| |
7-D acquisition (xyz, excitation and emission colour, time, stage position) |
|
| |
Loop-in-loop capability (repetition of complex command groups) |
|
| |
Experiments with varying acquisition speed and camera exposure |
|
| |
Autofocus, repeatedly during experiment |
|
| |
Live image display and online analysis |
|
| |
User interaction: pause, resume, set marker |
|
| |
|
|
Imaging software
|
cell^R |
|
| |
Structured database for multi-dimensional data handling and storage |
|
| |
Image types: (n x 16) bit, 8 - 24 bit export and import |
|
| |
Image processing: filters, extended focal imaging, shading and background correction, arithmetic… |
|
| |
Measurements and analyses: number, length, distance, area, circumference, angle, grey value, histograms, line profiles, tables, statistics, diagrams… |
|
| |
Fluorescence analyses: intensity kinetics, ratioing, Δ F/F |
|
| |
Spectral unmixing for optimised colour resolution |
|
| |
Deblurring, SliceViewer, VoxelViewer |
|
| |
Macros and automated functions: imaging C module, macro recorder |
|
| |
|
|
Options
|
Piezo-electric objective drive (all microscopes) or nosepiece drive (IX51, IX71, IX81 only) |
|
| |
TIRFM lasers and illumination combiners, multi-line |
|
| |
FRET, hardware and analysis (different algorithms) |
|
| |
Deconvolution for resolution enhancement |
|
| |
3-D rendering for three-dimensional image generation |
|
| |
Particle detection and tracking |
|
