News for Leica TCS STED CW

g-STED nanoscopy provides fundamentally improved spatial resolution over confocal microscopy in living cells. Here, the protein keratin is marked with the fluorescent protein Citrine in a living PtK2 cell. The insets show a magnified view of the marked areas, demonstrating the separation of features as small as 60 nm in the living cell. Fluorescence excitation at 485 nm, STED at 592 nm wavelength using a CW beam. Scale bars 1 μm. Copyright Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry

Developing the Next STED Generation

Wetzlar / Munich / Heidelberg, Germany. Leica Microsystems has signed an agreement with the Max Planck Society and the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) for the development of the next generation of super-resolution STED (Stimulated Emission Depletion) microscopy. This gives Leica Microsystems the license to develop the new technology, called gated STED, into a commercial product and put it on the market.

Professor Stefan Hell, Director at the Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, has taken his idea of STED microscopy a momentous step further with gated STED: The new technology significantly improves the resolution and contrast previously attained with CW-STED (Continuous-Wave Stimulated Emission Depletion) microscopy, while distinctly reducing laser intensity. This enhances photostability as well as live cell capability, substantially extending the range of possible applications. Also, gated STED technology will considerably increase the number of questions that can be addressed with STED fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (STED-FCS). The main application of gated STED FCS will be the observation of molecule movements in the membrane of living cells.

The new product of Leica Microsystems will be launched in the first half of the year 2012. Thanks to Leica Microsystems’ modular concept, the Leica TCS SP5 and Leica TCS STED CW confocal systems already on the market can be upgraded with gated STED.

“We’re delighted to be able to continue the provenly successful cooperation with the Max Planck Society, its technology transfer organization Max Planck Innovation and the DKFZ with this trailblazing product development,” says Dr. Stefan Traeger, Vice President of Leica Microsystems’ Life Science Division. “The new gated STED microscope will enable us to further strengthen our technological lead in super-resolution microscopy especially for confocal systems. “

• Press Release gated STED (English)
• Press Release gated STED (German)

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Leica Microsystems is a world leader in microscopes and scientific instruments. Founded as a family business in the nineteenth century, the company’s history was marked by unparalleled innovation on its way to becoming a global enterprise.

Its historically close cooperation with the scientific community is the key to Leica Microsystems’ tradition of innovation, which draws on users’ ideas and creates solutions tailored to their requirements. At the global level, Leica Microsystems is organized in four divisions, all of which are among the leaders in their respective fields: the Life Science Division, Industry Division, Biosystems Division and Medical Division.

Leica Microsystems’ Biosystems Division, also known as Leica Biosystems, offers histopathology laboratories the most extensive product range with appropriate products for each work step in histology and for a high level of productivity in the working processes of the entire laboratory.

The company is represented in over 100 countries with 12 manufacturing facilities in 7 countries, sales and service organizations in 19 countries and an international network of dealers. The company is headquartered in Wetzlar, Germany.

Leica SR GSD – Widefield super-resolution with ground state depletion (GSDIM)

The Leica SR GSD Microscope System Visualizes Small Subcellular Structures Far Below the Diffraction Limit

Wetzlar, Germany. With the new Leica SR GSD from Leica Microsystems, scientists can now achieve resolutions far below the limit of diffraction that have never been attained before in widefield fluorescence microscopy. The system is capable of resolving details as small as 20 nanometers. This enables research of structures of single proteins and other biomolecules in cells and observation of molecular processes to gain new insights into fundamental processes of life.

The Leica SR GSD is based on GSDIM technology (Ground State Depletion followed by Individual Molecule return; exclusively licensed from MPI Goettingen, based on the work of Professor Stefan Hell). It has already delivered amazing results in scientific experiments during its test phase. One of the key advantages of the GSDIM method is that it can be used with conventional fluorescence labels routinely applied in fluorescence imaging applications. GSDIM provides the highest resolution possible with a light microscope today, almost equaling that of an electron microscope.

Extended super-resolution portfolio

Based on many years of experience in super-resolution microscopy with its confocal laser scanning microscopy systems Leica TCS STED (2007) and Leica TCS STED CW (2009), Leica Microsystems is now extending its innovative portfolio of super-resolution light microscopy and nanoscopy products. “We are thrilled that the outstanding performance of the new Leica SR GSD has been confirmed by many experts. We have already received orders from the research community, and are eagerly awaiting first publications,” comments Sebastian Tille, head of the Business Segment ‘Widefield Imaging’ at Leica Microsystems.

Highly Integrated Multi-Modal System

The Leica SR GSD is based on a fully automated TIRF system (Total Internal Reflection Fluorescence). Combining the benefits of super-resolution with TIRF microscopy is one of many options. The system can also be used for a wide range of applications in all areas of live cell microscopy and high-end fluorescence microscopy. As a flexible, multi-functional system, the Leica SR GSD gives researchers the freedom to tailor the system exactly to their needs.

Novel Drift Optimization

The prevention of drift during image acquisition is a key issue in super-resolution microscopy for exact localization of molecules. The Leica SR GSD is equipped with the novel SuMo Stage technology (SUpressed MOtion) that guarantees minimum drift, eliminating the need for time-consuming drift compensation post acquisition. With the Leica SR GSD the user can immediately see the super-resolution image of the selected sample location during acquisition. The reduction of drift also simplifies specimen preparation, as there is no need to use gold particles or other standards for reference.

The Leica SR GSD is a reliable research tool for a wide range of biomedical applications, providing neuroscientists, cell biologists, virologists, structural biologists, microbiologists, and physiologists with new opportunities for studying the function and interaction of single molecules and visualization of sub-cellular structures.

• Press Release Leica SR GSD (English)
• Press Release Leica SR GSD (German)

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Leica Microsystems is a world leader in microscopes and scientific instruments. Founded as a family business in the nineteenth century, the company’s history was marked by unparalleled innovation on its way to becoming a global enterprise.

Its historically close cooperation with the scientific community is the key to Leica Microsystems’ tradition of innovation, which draws on users’ ideas and creates solutions tailored to their requirements. At the global level, Leica Microsystems is organized in four divisions, all of which are among the leaders in their respective fields: the Life Science Division, Industry Division, Biosystems Division and Medical Division.

Leica Microsystems’ Biosystems Division, also known as Leica Biosystems, offers histopathology laboratories the most extensive product range with appropriate products for each work step in histology and for a high level of productivity in the working processes of the entire laboratory.

The company is represented in over 100 countries with 12 manufacturing facilities in 7 countries, sales and service organizations in 19 countries and an international network of dealers. The company is headquartered in Wetzlar, Germany.

Francesca Cella, Paolo Bianchini and Alberto Diaspro (from left to right) with the new Leica TSC STED CW at the Italian Institute of Technology, Genoa, Italy

Fruitful Cooperation between the Italian Institute of Technology and Leica Microsystems

The Italian Institute of Technology (IIT) with its Central Research Lab in Genoa-Morego ranks among Italy’s leading multidisciplinary facilities for basic and applied research. About 380 people from 37 countries work in its highly modern laboratories in the fields of Robotics, Neuroscience & Brain Technology, Drug Discovery & Development as well as Nanosciences. The research programs have a pronounced interdisciplinary focus. 

Top research needs top instruments

This is exactly the basis for the close and fruitful cooperation between the ITT and Leica Microsystems. Almost at the same time as the market launch of the Leica TCS STED CW, the first system worldwide was inaugurated at the IIT.

"The new STED CW opens up new avenues for us in nanoscopy. This technology helps us to develop new scientific models and find answers to questions that we can use for new technological developments", commented Professor Alberto Diaspro, Head of the Nanophysics Department at the IIT during the official inauguration of the STED CW.

Prof. Diaspro has already worked closely with Leica Microsystems for many years in the field of high-end confocal microscopy, long before he started working at the IIT, in fact. Diaspro and his team at the ITT were also involved this time in the development of the Continuous Wave STED – the IIT was one of the first institutes to subject the new system to intensive testing. Professor Fabio Benfenati, Research Director of the Department of Neuroscience and Brain Technologies, who also attended the inauguration, stressed: "The cooperation with Leica Microsystems as one of the innovation and market leaders in optical microscopy puts our work in Nanophysics, Neuroscience, and Neurotechnology at the cutting edge of research in this field."

"The cooperation with the IIT is extremely important for us, because the IIT has one of the highest excellence standards in optical microscopy worldwide", says Martin Hoppe, Head of Confocal Market Development at Leica Microsystems. "The close personal contact with the top research scientists at the IIT, who use various microscope systems of Leica Microsystems, gives us valuable feedback for the further development of our products. And it’s extremely exciting for us to see how our microscopes help to master new scientific challenges."

With the new Leica TCS STED CW, superresolution will become an indispensable method in many life science research institutes working with light microscopes.

The Fast Track to Superresolution!

Mannheim, Germany. The new superresolution system Leica TCS STED CW made its successful début in December 2009 at the 49^th annual meeting of the American Society for Cell Biology in San Diego. A large number of highly interested scientists who followed the product demonstrations were convinced by the progressive technology with its potential to revolutionize life science research.

The Leica TCS STED CW is a stunningly simple solution – easy to use, highly affordable and available as an upgrade for already installed systems: The Leica TCS STED CW combines the high-end confocal Leica TCS SP5 with purely optical and patented superresolution technology and is characterized by its capability of high-speed scanning on the nanoscale – in real time! The Leica TCS STED CW allows the usage of numerous fluorescent dyes and fluorescent proteins, which significantly extends the range of possible applications.

The basic concept of the STED CW system is based on the STED technology, which received several awards and scales down the scanning spot to sub-diffraction size by switching off fluorescence in the periphery of the excited area. Stimulated emission is based on a well-thought-out interplay of fine optics and photo physical processes and delivers superresolution in a purely optical way – on a confocal platform.

Continuous wave lasers for depletion increase the STED recording speed up to three times without any loss of superresolution performance. Researchers can now follow dynamic processes with less than 80nm spatial resolution!

Leica Microsystems’ superresolution microscope Leica TCS STED CW is made for daily research and also provides a wealth of tailored solutions for specific application tasks and research environments. The workflow, which was designed in cooperation with leading scientists, and the easy operation of the system make superresolution accessible to a broad field of research.

• Press Release Leica TCS STED CW (English)
• Press Release Leica TCS STED CW (German)