Center for Electron Microscopy

The Indiana University School of Medicine Center for Electron Microscopy is a full-service research laboratory that offers cryo-electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. The core can provide technical services to help design and then implement experiments needing each type of microscopy.

Consultations are required for new projects for a fee of $100. This fee is refunded to the user after project completion. The service provided can apply both traditional methods and more recent technical developments to meet the investigator’s needs.

Full Service Support

The following procedures are provided as a full service with independent use allowed for use on the microscopes (TEM, Transmission Electron Microscope and Cryo-EM, Cryo-Electron Microscopy). Training is provided at the full-service price until capabilities on the equipment are confirmed. Independent work is billed at a lower cost (see fee schedule).

The core director has the authority to revoke the independent-use privilege or require retraining to ensure the safety of the equipment. All additional training requested or required are billed at the technician rate.

Pricing

Pricing for services provided by this core is available on the Fee Schedule.

Pricing

Cryogenic Electron Microscopy (Cryo-EM). ThermoFisher Glacios Cryo-TEM equipped with Falcon 4 detector. The center will provide a full range of cryo-EM services for structure determination, including grid preparation (glow discharge), sample/grid freezing with the Vitrobot, grid/sample screening on the Glacios, and data collection on the Glacios. We will also provide cryogenic grid shipping equipment for transporting grids to Purdue for additional data collection on the consortium Krios G4. Collaboration with staff scientists will be available for data processing and reconstruction.

Standard routine processing of specimens with fixation through embedding. Standard thick and thin sectioning with staining. Viewing and photography on the TEM. Standard photography, digital images provided via one drive. Standard supplies (including some fixatives) are provided. Standard routine processing includes either tissue or cell cultures either as monolayers, on membranes or as pellets and special orientation. The facility has the capability to do negative staining.

Standard routine processing of specimens with fixation and embedding in Unicryl. Standard routine thick and thin sectioning for post-embedding immunostaining. Viewing and photography on the TEM. digital images provided via one drive.

For immunostaining, the primary antibody is provided by the investigator; the Electron Microscopy Core provides the secondary and can do pre-embedding immunostaining if desired.