# Transmission Electron Microscope

> **NIH NIH S10** · BOSTON UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CAMPUS · 2020 · $463,258

## Abstract

Abstract
Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM), a high-ranking medical school and research institution, has a
long history of leadership and excellence in the study of the ultrastructure of the nervous system and the eye in
normal and pathological conditions. Currently, 14 NIH-funded investigators from 6 departments/centers
(Anatomy & Neurobiology, Pharmacology, Ophthalmology, Medicine, Biochemistry, and the Center for
Regenerative Medicine) at BUSM need access to a transmission electron microscope (TEM). These
investigators' research projects span multiple fields, including aging, neurodegenerative disease (Alzheimer's,
Huntington's and Parkinson's), brain injury, cortical connectivity, diabetes, glaucoma, uveitis, tissue repair and
inflammation. Each of these projects employ modern, high-throughput EM techniques to link ultrastructure and
subcellular mechanisms to studies using other behavioral, molecular, and confocal and light microscopy
techniques. However, although there are two TEMs currently available at BUSM, one is used primarily for clinical
diagnostic purposes, and the other is optimized for cryogenic-EM and heavily prioritized for intra-departmental
and structural biology research group use. Thus, the availability of these TEMs for use by other NIH-funded
researchers at BUSM is very limited, and their TEM work must either be done at TEM facilities in nearby
institutions with limited availability or be outsourced to other institutions at high cost, which significantly hinders
the productivity of current-NIH funded investigators and the training of graduate students and post-doctoral
fellows in TEM techniques. Therefore, there is a very significant need for a TEM optimized for high-throughput
imaging of large tissue blocks in multiple research labs and departments at BUSM. The requested instrument
will significantly increase and accelerate the productivity of NIH-funded projects and also enable these expert
investigators to obtain pilot data for new proposals. Investigators' expertise in this proposal span multiple
disciplines and scales of techniques, garnering the ability to gather multi-scale data at the systems and cellular
levels. Given the highly-collaborative environment at BUSM, the requested TEM will facilitate the much-needed
collaborative multidisciplinary studies to make significant advancements within each of the respective fields
represented by the investigators in this proposal. The purchase of the JEOL JEM1400S-Flash equipped with
accessories that enable high-throughput, high-contrast, semi-automated image montaging, and 3D serial
imaging will also facilitate the much-needed training of the next generation of biomedical scientists proficient in
EM. This will greatly benefit both BUSM, an institution committed to high quality graduate education, and the
biomedical research workforce nationally, by allowing expert investigators to continue to be highly productive in
ultrastructure and related research while continui...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9940287
- **Project number:** 1S10OD028571-01
- **Recipient organization:** BOSTON UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CAMPUS
- **Principal Investigator:** HAIYAN GONG
- **Activity code:** S10 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $463,258
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2020-06-15 → 2021-06-14

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9940287

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9940287, Transmission Electron Microscope (1S10OD028571-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-27 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9940287. Licensed CC0.

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