New azimutal Total Internal Reflection Fluorescence (TIRF) microscope from Gataca Systems and Zeiss available at UNamur-NARILIS

A new azimutal Total Internal Reflection Fluorescence (TIRF) microscope from Gataca Systems and Zeiss adds to the list of cutting-edge equipment of the Morph-Im platform (Morphology & Imaging). This remarkable instrument has just been installed at the UNamur and is unique in Federation Wallonia-Brussels. It was funded through the Incentive grant for scientific research (MIS) awarded to Henri-François Renard by the FNRS.

With this new microscopy tool, NARILIS researchers will have access to live-cell multi-color imaging of dynamic events happening at the surface of their samples (i.e. plasma membrane). This opens up new avenues for the study of a broad variety of cellular processes or stuctures: exocytosis/endocytosis, single molecule movements/diffusion, cell-cell and cell-substrate adhesion, receptor-mediated signaling, cytoskeleton and organelle contacts with plasma membrane, migration, filopodia, etc. In addition, azimutal TIRF allows imaging and reconstruction of 3D processes, with an axial resolution down to 50 nm. Beyond the biology field, the application spectrum of TIRF microscopy can expand to physics and biophysics.

An inaugural session of the new microscopy tools acquired in 2021 will be organized in the coming weeks. Stay tuned!

Contact: henri-francois.renard@unamur.be