The Olympus IX81 microscope with the new ZDC2 Z-Drift compensation
system automatically maintains focus when capturing multiple images

The Olympus inverted IX81 microscope with ZDC2 Z-Drift compensation system is a next generation solution, ensuring that your samples are always in focus, providing extremely sharp images. The two modes, continuous and 'one-shot', enable the completion of any time-lapse experiments. The brand new Z-Drift compensation system continually monitors the distance between the objective lens and the sample surface, thus maintaining accurate focus during even the fastest time-lapse experiments. In contrast, the 'one-shot' mode facilitates applications requiring multiple focal positions. Providing excellent speed, accuracy and flexibility, the ZDC2 Z-Drift compensation microscope system is perfect for any live-cell imaging, maintaining optimal focus image after image, regardless of experiment length or complexity.The Olympus IX81 microscope systems are highly stable, rigid and reliable, taking advantage of the proprietary UIS2 objectives, providing exceptional contrast, brightness and resolution resulting in superb clarity.  The IX81 combines seamlessly with the ZDC2 Z-Drift compensation module to provide automatic focal adjustment. The ZDC2 employs an infrared laser diode to locate the interface between the slide cover slip and the surrounding media. As the relationship between the sample and the cover slip tends to be consistent, this allows the microscope system to remain focused in response to external factors, via the rapid adjustment of the nosepiece. Adjustments made using the ZDC2 are extremely fast and accurate.

The high quality build and optics of the IX81 microscope frame, combined with the focal accuracy and flexibility provided by the ZDC2 Z-Drift compensation system, enables perfect time-lapse imaging of living cells. The new continuous mode of the ZDC2 system provides real-time control of focal accuracy, maintaining focus even during the quickest rapid-capture experiments. This new mode is also ideal for more complex applications, such as total internal reflection microscopy (TIRFM). For longer time-lapse studies, the 'one-shot' mode can be employed, maintaining accurate focus for hours, days or even weeks at a time. It also allows users to image multiple sample wells, for example those found in tissue culture plates, independently adjusting focus to provide crystal clear images from every well.

The complete system is compatible with a range of powerful Olympus hardware and software, including cellSens Dimension and xcellence, as well as integrating fully with environmentally-isolated stage incubation systems. Using the IX81 microscope system with ZDC2 Z-Drift compensation, you never need to worry about losing focus again, at least, not on your samples.

For further information, e-mail: microscopy@olympus-europa.com or view website: www.microscopy.olympus.eu   Refer to page 236

CoolCell replaces conventional cryopreservation
tools, offers improved cell freezing and viability

Roslin Cellab, the preeminent incubator for stem cell research and a leading provider of stem cell research services to life sciences companies, has selected BioCision's^®CoolCell^® freezing container for cryopreservation of human embryonic stem cell lines. The decision by Roslin Cellab - a subsidiary of the Roslin Foundation and sister company to Roslin Cells, a world leader in the isolation of new clinical grade undifferentiated stem cells for use in research and therapy - comes after a comprehensive review of the CoolCell product line. CoolCell will replace the organization's conventional cryopreservation tools sitewide.

"This is by far and away the best benchtop technology to enter the field of cell cryopreservation for decades. We have compared the BioCision CoolCell to our old conventional method of cryopreservation and found it to be easier, safer and most importantly of all, our cell lines were recovered with reproducibly higher viability yields post-thaw, and subsequent ongoing growth was improved," said John Gardner, senior project leader at Roslin Cellab. "This suggests that the freezing rate is more accurate than the isopropyl alcohol method, which is crucial if a cell line is to survive cryopreservation."

Roslin Cellab assists scientists and technologists with proof-of-concept research, with the goal of translating stem cell research into commercially viable technologies. It supports collaborative research and provides a wide array of services for life sciences companies interested in engaging in stem cell research.

The organization had been using a cell freezing container that required the use of 100 percent isopropyl alcohol for stepwise (-1 degree C/minute) cooling of cell lines in a -80 degree C freezer. This method requires frequent changes of the isopropyl alcohol, a cumbersome and expensive process that demands constant maintenance and yields variable results.

"Roslin Cellab's deployment of CoolCell represents an important validation for our technology. We believe our alcohol-free CoolCell is enhancing cryopreservation for stem cells, PBMCs, cell lines and other cell types, as well as in other areas of research in which the accuracy of freezing rates is critical," said BioCision CEO Rolf Ehrhardt, MD, PhD. "Labs at institutions such as Stanford University and University of California, San Francisco that are engaged in stem cell and other cell-based research are increasingly adopting our products to ensure the accuracy of their research."

BioCision's CoolCell is ideal for cell lines, stem cells, PBMC, primary cells and yeast. Designed with a patent-pending controlled-freezing technology, CoolCell offers many advantages over alcohol-filled containers, including no maintenance, no on-going cost and no hazardous waste. With the elimination of alcohol, CoolCell delivers a highly reproducible, consistent cooling rate of -1 degree C/minute and identical freezing profiles each time. The result is superior cell viability and function, and more reliable cell assays.

In addition to the CoolCell products, Roslin Cellab is deploying BioCision's ThermalTray^™ and CoolRack^® modules, which eliminate direct sample contact with ice, water or liquid nitrogen and enhance sterility procedures when handling vials for tissue culture procedures. The ThermalTray platforms and CoolRack modules provide a safe and reproducible option for snap-freezing. The additional option of placing the modules in a 37 degree C water bath aids the sterile thawing of cryovials, and delivers consistent and reproducible thawing profiles.

"The combination of controlled freezing with the CoolCell and controlled temperature for thawing greatly increases the reproducibility of the freeze-thaw process, with increased cell viability and cell growth post-thaw. The versatility of the system is simply brilliant," Roslin Cellab's Gardner said. "The ThermalTray and CoolRack would greatly benefit the process of transferring frozen cell lines using a dry shipper between laboratories. Transfer from the dry shipper to a tray can be achieved quickly without any thawing; the vials are maintained frozen in the tray while they are transferred to laboratory. This also eliminates the transfer of the dry shipper into the tissue culture suite, which is a source of potential contamination."

BioCision is the leading developer of portable benchtop tools for temperature-sensitive biomedical specimens and samples used in basic research, assay development, biomarker studies, diagnostics and clinical trials.

For further information, view website: www.biocision.com  Refer to page 241

The University of Leipzig adds JPK's CellHesion 200 capability to enhance cell-cell force measurements

JPK Instruments, a world-leading manufacturer of nanoanalytic instrumentation for research in life sciences and soft matter, reports that the University of Leipzig has chosen the CellHesion® 200 system for their Institute of Experimental Physics I.

The research of the Institute of Experimental Physics I is focused on soft condensed matter as bulk material, in interaction with surfaces and interfaces, and with single molecules. The systems under study cover a wealth like small tracer molecules, liquid crystals, polymers, polymer-networks, proteins, and even living biological cells. It is objective of the research of the Institute of Experimental Physics I to explore the physical basis of structure-property relationships in these systems.

Professor Josef A. Käs using the JPK CellHesion® 200 system. 

Professor Josef A. Käs moved his group to Leipzig in 2001 from the University of Texas at Austin. At this time, he became one of the first users of the JPK NanoWizard® series of atomic force microscopes to start a close series of interactions between his group and JPK. Most recently, Professor Käs added the JPK CellHesion 200 system to provide the ability to study the interplay between compartmentalization of cell and tumor spreading.

Compartmentalization is the formation of cellular compartments (e.g. tissues and organs). It generates well-defined boundaries for various differentiated cell types. Cells of the same type adhere better to each other, whereas mixtures of different migrating cell types segregate. According to the differential adhesion hypothesis (Malcom S. Steinberg, 1960s), cell sorting and formation of cellular compartments result from different adhesiveness of participating cells. The group tries to apply and verify the concept of compartmentalization and differential adhesion hypothesis to tumor development and spreading. It is known that young tumor cells are confined to their compartment of origin. With rising malignancy up to metastasis, tumor cells become able to overcome compartment boundaries. The goal is to clarify whether tumor stages can be characterized by cellular adhesiveness. This is why they are measuring healthy and cancerous cells of different malignancy with the JPK CellHesion 200.

Another project applying CellHesion 200 is one studying biocompatibility. Magnetic shape memory alloys are a class of smart materials which have a high potential for actuators in biomedical applications. These are tested for their biocompatibility by coating those materials with different cell adhesion proteins and using the CellHesion 200 for cell-substrate adhesion measurements.

JPK's CellHesion 200 system is a dedicated stand-alone platform for cell adhesion and cytomechanics studies to be used with inverted optical or confocal microscopes. It enables the quantification of single cell-cell and cell-surface interactions under physiological conditions. This ground-breaking technique, known as single cell force spectroscopy (SCFS), measures the interaction forces between a living cell bound to a cantilever and a target cell, functionalized substrate or biomaterial. In parallel, cytomechanical characteristics including stiffness and elasticity can be determined. Data can be measured for a number of important parameters involved in cellular adhesion, including maximum cell adhesion force, single unbinding events, tether characteristics, and work of removal.

Choosing to work with JPK has proved very beneficial for the Käs group. Speaking on behalf of the group, post graduate student Steve Pawlizak says "In our opinion, JPK offers the best SFM solution for biological or biophysical application available on the market. In a convenient way, it enables simultaneous use of SFM and a variety of light microscopy techniques such as bright field, phase contrast, epi-fluorescence as well as laser scanning microscopy on inverted research microscopes. This is absolutely necessary for our applications in cellular biophysics."

For further information, view website: www.jpk.com or e-mail: dammermann@jpk.com   Refer to page 230