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Facilities
The department is well-resourced for undergraduate and postgraduate teaching as well as for staff research. For teaching, there are multidisciplinary laboratories, an excellent human anatomy museum, a sophisticated dissection laboratory, as well as an advanced embalming suite and cadaver-storage facilities. There are laboratories for tissue sectioning, immunocytochemical studies and neuroanatomical studies. There is an electron microscope preparation suite with access to the University’s Electron Microscopic Unit. Facilities for morphometric and imaging analysis are available. The Department is also well-equipped for cell and molecular biology studies with multiple cell and tissue culture laboratories, equipment for quantitative polymerase chain reaction (QPCR), single-cell microinjection, laser capture microdissection and flow cytometry. There are established facilities for wide-field fluorescent and conventional laser scanning confocal microscopy. In addition, there is a multiphoton scanning laser confocal microscope for live cell imaging and a spinning disc laser scanning confocal
microscope for high-speed image acquisition.
Financial support for these research activities are provided via Departmental, University and Hong Kong sources. The Department has been successful in attracting research funds from the University's Committee on Research & Conference Grants, the Research Grants Council and the Croucher Foundation and other funding bodies. In the last three years, these grants have totalled HK$14.5 Million. All staff are provided with a PC which is connected to the University network giving access to www, e-mail, the mainframe computer, the library catalogues and CD ROM.
Jump to a Facility:
Flow Cytometer / Laser Capture Microdissection / Confocal Imaging System / Ultramicrotome / Image Analyzer
Multiphoton Confocal Microscope / Animal Surgical Rooms / Tissue Culture Hoods / General Laboratory / Seminar Room
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Coulter Elite Sorter
A flow cytometer is for analyzing particles in a liquid stream as they pass through a highly focused beam of light. Signals generated are detected by sensors, and the information collected is computerized for display and analysis. Its other important feature is the ability to sort out populations of cell of desired properties. Other applications for flow cytometer include immunophenotyping and DNA studies. The flow cytometer in the Dept of Anatomy is a Coulter Elite Sorter. It is capable of 4 colors analysis and 2-way cell sorting at a rate of up to 10,000 events per second. It has a module called AutoClone, which allows sorting onto 6 - 96 wells culture plates. Cells sorted have high viability (up to 85%), and can be further cultured. |
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Arcturus LM200 Laser Capture Microdissector
This system is employed in removing of defined cell population from either a paraffin section or a frozen section. No special treatment is required. These cells are ready for DNA, RNA and protein analysis. One of the common procedure is for amplified by PCR for nucleic acid study.
Application:
For collecting group of cells from paraffin sections of liver, intestine, using for DNA extraction, used as template for PCR
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BioRad Radian 2100 Confocal Imaging System
The laser scanning confocal microscope provides optimum image resolution as out-focus fluorescent signals will not be detected. This will much improve the image quality and resolution of the specimen. With the advance computing software, high quality 3-D reconstruction of the specimen becomes easy and 3-D analysis is possible. A relatively thick specimen can be studied by optical tissue sectioning. The inner structure of the whole specimen can be resolved with little distortion.
Applications:
- Propidium iodide (PI) staining to study positive evidence of cell nuclear fragmentation
- Double immunofluorescence staining to study centrosome amplification of cancer cells
- DAPI staining for studying the function of mitotic checkpoint in cancer cells
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Ultramicrotome
Machine accurately producing either semi-thin (0.5 to 1mm) or ultrathin sections (60 to 90nm) from resin-embedded materials which are of a uniform and reproducible thickness for the examination in both light microscope and transmission electron microscope. The ultrathin sections are perfectly adequate for the study of most fine structures and have the main advantage over light microscope in resolution. Patience and attention is required in ultramicrotomy but not particularly difficult.
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Leica Qwin Image Analyzer
This image analyzer composes a light microscope with a video-camera connected to a PC with a software Leica QWin . Using the Leica QWin software, stained image data from the tissue section was analysed using parameters such as Percentage area, Saturation and Intensity. By comparing the data, the enzyme activities can be determined. |
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Multiphoton Confocal Microscope Zeiss 510-Meta
Description and applications here |
Animal Surgical Rooms
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Tissue Culture Hoods
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General Laboratory
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Seminar Room
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