October 9, 2017
The Institute of Photonic Science, Barcelona becomes a new NANOSCOPY IMAGING REFERENCE SITE for Leica Microsystems
Barcelona, October 9th 2017. October 6th marked the beginning of a new partnership between ICFO - The Institute of Photonic Sciences in Barcelona and Leica Microsystems. The new collaboration agreement aims to promote and establish ICFO as a new European Nanoscopy Imaging Reference Site for Leica. As such, ICFO’s experts in super-resolution will partner with Leica Microsystems to conceptualize and implement technological improvements to the state-of-the-art systems from Leica.
This new collaboration sees the installation of the latest generation in nanoscopy systems from Leica Microsystems at the ICFO – the Leica microscopy system TCS SP8 STED 3X. Through the collaboration, Leica Microsystems and ICFO will work together to further develop the technology behind nanoscopy, find new application in biomedicine and biophysics, and to offer access to nanoscopy to a wide community of researchers across Europe, including members of the Euro-BioImaging, Corbel European and LaserLab research infrastructure programs.
Nanoscopy overcomes earlier limits of optical microscopy by allowing to resolve and observe structures down to just a few nanometers in size with methods like STED. So Nanoscopy became a key investigative tool in the most important medical research of today, including research into neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimers. In Barcelona, local researchers of the ICFO already use Leica Microsystems nanoscopy systems for example, in cooperation with the Bellvitge Hospital and the University of Barcelona to study retinal degeneration, and the Sant Pau Hospital in Barcelona study beta-amyloid plaques and their effects on Alzheimer’s disease.
This three-year R&D collaboration expects to bring fruitful results within the European biomedical research community. As Pablo Loza, ICFO researcher and leader of the SLN facility at ICFO comments, “We are thrilled with the addition of this new Leica state-of-the-art microscope and the new collaboration agreement set forward with Leica Microsystems R&D team. We are sure the new TCS SP8 STED 3X, combined with all other instruments within our SLN facility at ICFO, will produce a qualitative jump on today’s research and applications and will enable us to delve into a new realm of novel biomedical applications that we are yet to fathom”.
Christoph Thumser, Sales Director for Life Science Research EMEA stated “Leica Microsystems are delighted to embark on this collaboration with the ICFO. We are confident that the combination of ICFO’s expertise in photonics and optical technology and Leica Microsystems strengths in advanced imaging solutions will lead to great developments in microscopy. The ICFO’s strong links to the imaging community through its association with CORBEL and Eurobioimaging will also benefit Leica Microsystems. Due to the SLN’s plan to offer open access to the Leica microscopy system TCS SP8 STED 3X, we will learn a great deal about how nanoscopy is used today and how it should develop into the future.
Image Legend: Lluis Torner, ICFO Director and Christoph Thumser, Sales Director for Life Science Research EMEA celebrating the new agreement with members of their teams.
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About Leica Microsystems
Leica Microsystems develops and manufactures microscopes and scientific instruments for the analysis of microstructures and nanostructures. Ever since the company started as a family business in the nineteenth century, its instruments have been widely recognized for their optical precision and innovative technology. It is one of the market leaders in compound and stereo microscopy, digital microscopy, confocal laser scanning microscopy with related imaging systems, electron microscopy sample preparation, and surgical microscopes.
Leica Microsystems has seven major plants and product development sites around the world. The company is represented in over 100 countries, has sales and service organizations in 20 countries, and an international network of distribution partners. Its headquarters are located in Wetzlar, Germany.
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