With this news post wel would like to introduce the Zeiss AxioImager II Wide-Field microscope which has recently become part of our imaging centre.
This fully motorized system enables fast and scalable overview acquisition of fluorescence images in Wide-Field mode. Compatible with known channels across the visible spectrum and even into the near-infrared range.
An additional color camera allows you to correlate fluorescence images with a brightfield stain such as H&E. The 8‑slide insert makes it possible to process multiple samples in one run, significantly improving throughput for larger experiments.
Previously, this system was part of Pathology’s Research Facility (PARTS). We are pleased to make this microscope available once again within the Optical Imaging Centre. In the near future a software upgrade will make this system ready to be used for SMART microscopy. We will inform you in more detail when this is implemented.
Convenient pre-scan before acquiring confocal images
The microscope is equipped with a motorized stage capable of holding up to eight slides, thereby enabling the setup of large tile scans. The objectives are all air-immersion which makes it possible to adjust the magnification of the objective with the lowest magnification (2.5x) to the highest (63x) magnification without touching your sample.
Although widefield imaging provides lower z‑resolution than confocal microscopy, the system excels in scalability, acquisition speed and low magnification overview imaging. Combining the the two systems will give you an advantage in overview with the widefield and local detailed imaging with the confocal microscope.
The ability to transfer the overview images acquired with the Zeiss AxioImager II microscope to the Zeiss LSM 900 confocal system, also located in Be‑311, and subsequently acquire high‑resolution images of relevant regions, will be of significant value.
More specifications
The extra color camera will make this our only system in the imaging facility to correlate a chromogenic staining like H&E with fluorescence. Additional optics enable polarized light transmission imaging, expanding the range of contrast methods.
The Colibri 7 LED excitation system provides dedicated LEDs for each fluorescence channel, combining long lifetime with rapid switching. Its high transmission in the 735/40 nm band enables efficient near‑infrared imaging with reduced exposure times compared to other systems.
If you want to make use of this microscope, please contact us for an introduction. The system can be found in our schedular under the name WF_311.
More detailed specifications of this system can be found on our equipment page: link.