UCSF
UCSF Innovation Core (Advanced Light Microscopy)
Confocal, super-resolution, FLIM, high-content and light-sheet imaging for neuroscience and beyond.
1651 4th Street, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
About the core
The Innovation Core at the UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences gives researchers reliable access to advanced imaging systems that are often beyond the reach of a single lab. We run fully automated confocal, widefield, high-content, super-resolution and light-sheet microscopes, two image analysis workstations with open-source and commercial software, and a 100 TB server connected to the instruments and workstations by fiber for fast data transfer and secure storage.
Every project starts with a consultation on experimental design, image acquisition and analysis, followed by one-on-one training and ongoing technical support. We are on UCSF's Mission Bay campus and support more than 50 labs, from UCSF neuroscience to the wider Bay Area research community.
We also host lunch-and-learn seminars, vendor demos and workshops, from tissue clearing to FLIM and AI-assisted image analysis. Recordings of some past events are available on request.
Imaging modalities
Most of these work on both live and fixed samples.
- Widefield fluorescence, with instant computational clearing
- Confocal microscopy, with instant deconvolution
- Super-resolution: STED and Tau-STED, and SoRa spinning disk
- Fluorescence lifetime imaging (one-photon FLIM)
- High-content imaging in multiwell plates
- Photomanipulation for optogenetics and FRAP
- Color imaging of colorimetric and polarized stains
- Model organism imaging on a motorized stereomicroscope
- Light-sheet imaging of cleared, fixed samples
Working with us
Every user is trained by our staff before running any instrument.
- Tell us about your project at [email protected]. Researchers from outside UCSF are welcome, from universities and companies alike.
- Meet us for a pre-training consultation about your goals, your samples and the right system. It is free for UCSF users.
- Before training, complete the UC laser safety course for the confocal and light-sheet systems. Live samples with recombinant DNA or infectious agents need a UCSF BUA that lists the core's rooms.
- Train one-on-one with us, then book the instruments yourself.
Booking and rates
Each instrument can be booked for up to 12 hours a week between 8 AM and 8 PM, up to 14 days ahead, plus another 12 hours on nights and weekends. Changes within 48 hours of a booking carry a fee.
Rates are hourly and depend on who you are (UCSF, external non-profit or for-profit) and when you book (peak hours are 8 AM to 8 PM on weekdays). The current rates are on our website. For small companies and start-ups, we are happy to find creative ways to reduce cost.
Acknowledging the core
If the core helped your work, please acknowledge it in papers, posters, presentations, grant applications and reports. Acknowledgments show our impact and keep the instruments funded.
For access and support: "We thank the UCSF Innovation Core at the Weill Institute for Neurosciences for access to light microscopy instrumentation, training, and technical support."
When we also helped design or optimize your experiment: "We thank the UCSF Innovation Core at the Weill Institute for Neurosciences for access to light microscopy instrumentation, training, and scientific guidance on experimental design and optimization."
Papers with data from the CSU-W1 SoRa cite Micro-Manager, and papers with data from the SmartSPIM acknowledge the Sandler Program for Breakthrough Biomedical Research. Send us your methods section before you submit and we will check it, and tell us when you publish so we can add the paper to our list.
Partners
The Innovation Core has been a Leica Microsystems Center of Excellence since 2021. The partnership gives Bay Area researchers access to new imaging technology, expert training and support, and early access to new systems, and gives Leica direct feedback from the people using its instruments.
A Chan Zuckerberg Initiative Imaging Scientist grant supporting Caroline Mrejen has also contributed substantially to building the core.
Contact the facility
Talk to the team about your research, access, or a visit.
Before your first session
Only users trained by our staff can book and run the instruments. Write to us first, and we will meet you for a consultation about your project.
Get in touch
Find us
UCSF
Weill Neurosciences Building, 4th floor, rooms 451J, 472A, 472B and 421C
1651 4th Street, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
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