CISMM manipulation technology is being used to measure the elasticity and strength of individual fibrin fibers that comprise blood clots (see gif movie). The quantum dot labeled fiber, about 300 nanometers in diameter, is imaged in solution with an inverted optical microscope simultaneous with quantitative atomic force microscopy manipulation. See the Fibrin page for more information.

Science

We have been able to track magnetic beads attached to beating cilia in live cell cultures within our 3DFM. By applying different magnetic fields to the system, we are able to affect the beat
pattern. See our media gallery for a video showing an early instance of tracking, where the bead was on a slowly-moving cilium.

Tools

Our Resource-developed "Tube Tracer" application for tracing 2D tubes in images has been released as a set of Matlab modules for use by the general public. See our software dissemination web page for a description of how to run the software and how to download it.

Past Events:

2005 Carolina Workshop on Force Measurement and Manipulation in Biological Microscopy
We had our first offering of this workshop on August 15-17, 2005.

Force Measurements in Biology Workshop
Biomedical Engineering Society 2004 Annual Fall Meeting October 13, Philadelphia, PA
Rich Superfine reviewed measurement techniques used to study forces from single molecules up to cell cultures.