New microscope peers into secret live...(MRI of the human body reveals. It ha...),Health

It has been my experience, that advances in analytical science often open the door to new scientific inventions and innovations, said David Weir, director of the Delaware Biotechnology Institute. The capability we now have with this new microscope, which allows us to observe natural processes as they occur and in great detail, will surely result in new, important discoveries.

Currently, Czymmek and his staff--associate scientist Liz Adams and research associates Deborah Powell and Shannon Modla--are assisting UD researchers with a broad range of scientific projects on plants and fungi, vocal cords, bone health, biofilms, DNA repair, and gel-like synthetic polymers, among others.

An average of 175 users per year have been served at the center since it opened in 2001, according to Czymmek. UD faculty, staff and students, as well as research collaborators from industry and governmental agency partners, have all been trained in the safe and proper operation of the center's sophisticated eyes.

UD's Bio-Imaging Center also is an important resource for scientists beyond Delaware's borders, with colleagues from the National Institutes of Health, Johns Hopkins University, DuPont, Georgetown University, Merck, and Virginia Commonwealth University attending microscopy training workshops hosted by Czymmek and his staff.

Czymmek, who refers to himself as a jack of all trades, has been using confocal microscopes on almost a daily basis since 1990 when they helped illuminate his doctoral studies of plant diseases and fungi.

One of the things he most likes about his position at UD is its cross-disciplinary focus. He has assisted scientists in examining the hard exoskeleton of an insect, for example, to learn how to make new and improved materials.

I like being able to help tie together the biology and engineering and help people figure out the best way to solve a problem, he says.