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WCVM Imaging Centre WCVM Imaging Centre

Electron and light microscopy laboratory, open to all researchers on the University of Saskatchewan campus and beyond

About

The Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) Image Centre is located in a suite of rooms on the veterinary college’s second floor, with the main lab located in Room 2208.

We are a fee-for-service facility and provide electron and light microscopy services. The Image Centre has two dedicated technicians who maintain the scopes and work with researchers who are using this facility.

The centre's technicians can help you with the following: 

  • assist with your grant applications
  • discuss the capabilities of the available equipment
  • help you plan your sampling protocols to optimize your results
  • fix your samples
  • prepare your samples for the microscope
  • help show you how to use the scopes to do your own work or to do the work for you

Equipment

Electron microscopes

Light microscopes

  • TIRF, total internal reflection fluorescence microscope (Olympus IX83)
  • Two confocal laser scanning microscopes (Leica SP5, Zeiss 710 equipped with Two Photon)

Virtual microscope

  • Virtual slide scanning microscope (Olympus BX61VS)

IHC stainer

  • Automated IHC stainer (Leica BOND-MAX)

Image analysis workstation

  • AutoQuant for deconvolution and quantitative image analyses
  • Imaris for 3D rendering and quantitative image analyses
  • cellSens for deconvolution and quantitative image analyses
  • ImageJ/Fiji for various image analyses

Ultrasound imaging system

  • Ultrasound imaging station (Visual Sonic Vevo 3100)

Sample preparation

  • Sputter Coater (Quorum Q150T ES)
  • Ultramicrotomes (Leica Ultracut UCT and Reichert Ultracut E)

Capabilities

  • Confocal microscopes capable of imaging multiple labels (405, 476, 488, 496, 514, 543, 633 nm excitation lasers)
  • Two-photon for low toxicity and depth penetration to ≥ 200 μm
  • Live cell imaging
  • One-on-one guided training
  • Technical assistance and guidance for experiments
  • AutoQuant3 Deconvolution, Imaris 3D rendering and ImageJ/Fiji software for all post-acquisition processing