Shared equipment for counting and sizing of cell populations

. In order to understand how cells behave as they grow and as they respond to different signals, we have to be able to count their number and measure their size. Such measurements can be made using microscopic methods, but these methods are very laborious, require significant expertise and patience, and give poor quality data due to small sample size and operator error. A much better approach is to use an automatic instrument that provides accurate values taken from large samples, and in a very short time. The 6 applicants work in a number of different areas of cell biology, reflecting their appointments in 8 different departments. All rely on such measurements of cell number and size for their different experimental models. Their data have been obtained up to this point using an instrument that dates from 1982 and for which parts are no longer available. This 'cell counter' is currently under repair, and a key component is held together with acrylic adhesive. In addition, this older model of cell counter relies on a mercury manometer for volume measurement, which is not desirable. (Mercury is being phased out in laboratory instrumentation worldwide.) Finally, the existing instrument has no means of recording individual data, which have to be written down by hand and subsequently entered manually into a computer. The two instruments provided will create a shared core facility for these 3 NSERC investigators and their 3 collaborators, and maximise the impact of this equipment in their various studies of cell biology. These instruments are state-of-the-art cell counters/sizers that meet the current and future needs of the investigators. They use a mercury-free mechanism to measure the number and size of cells, cell fragments and cell aggregates, and output data using software that maximizes the information gained. They are essential for the investigators and will have a tremendous impact upon their ongoing work.