Over the past two years we have made significant efforts to develop the LMF into a state-of-the-art microscopy facility. These efforts have included (1) development of a new user-friendly booking system allowing an easy communication between the users; (2) an efficient standardized training program; (3) monthly microscopy user meetings to share our experiences with microscopy and best practices for image presentation and methods documentation; and (3) microscope upgrades and purchases, software acquisition, and facility renovations to create a cutting-edge facility.
Our goal has always been to increase accessibility to this resource for Maine INBRE researchers. However, that remains challenging due to distance and the COVID-19 pandemic. In response to these challenges, we have developed the Light Microscopy Remote Interaction Program, which provides access to the sophisticated technology at the MDIBL LMF without the need to travel and to be on site. The program can be summarized as: “Collaborating by courier, imaging by mail”.
This program has been piloted by several researchers, including INBRE project leader Dr. Timothy Breton, Assistant Professor of Biology at University of Maine at Farmington, who published his work in Scientific Reports. Dr. Breton notes that “the microscopy remote interaction program has solved our imaging issues by allowing our smaller campus to both use these resources from a distance and leverage expertise made available by the Light Microscopy Core.”
For more information, see the attached PDF. I look forward to seeing you on a screen!
Frederic Bonnet, PhD, Microscopist and the manager for Light Microscopy Facility (LMF) at MDIBL.