Electron Microscopy Equipment
Sample preparation devices
FEI Vitrobot
This is a double-sided plunge freezing device used for a wide range of specimens from macromolecular complexes to small prokaryotic cells. In our facility, we have two Vitrobots available for users.
Leica EM GP
This is a single-sided plunge freezing device used for a wide range of specimens from macromolecular complexes to eukaryotic cells.
Leica EM ICE High Pressure Freezer
High pressure freezing allows vitrification of thick (100 - 200 μm) tissues such as C.elegans, roots, tissue slices, or even cells in suspension. Due to the thickness of the sample, techniques such as cryo-ultramicrotomy, focused ion beam milling, or focused ion beam lift-out are required to produce thin sections of tissue for further electron microscopy imaging.
Leica EM AFS2 Freeze Substitution and Low Temperature Embedding System
The Leica EM AFA2 can perform freeze substitution and progressive lowering of temperature (PLT) techniques, and allows low temperature embedding and polymerisation of resins.
Leica UC7 Ultra-microtome with EM FC7 Cryochamber
Ultramicrotomy uses thin diamond knifes to cut thin (70 - 150 μm) sections of tissue from your sample into long ribbons. At Leeds, our UC7 is equipped with an FC7 cryochamber which allows sectioning of vitrified samples at cryogenic temperatures, micromanipulators for precise mechanical movement of ribbons and electron microscopy grids, and an EM CRION ionizer to statically adhere ribbons to electron microscopy grids. Predominantly, the UC7 is used as a tool for cryo-electron microscopy of vitreous sections (CEMOVIS), which we specialise at integrating into CLEM workflows.