High content screening automation for Leica confocal microscopes

1 June 2010

Leica Microsystems has released the the Leica HCS A, a high-content screening automation package for  confocal research microscopes.

Combining the strength of high-resolution point scanners with the new LAS AF Matrix M3 software platform, it delivers a flexible tool for automated imaging in multi dimensions. It enables researchers to customize Leica confocal microscopes according to actual requirements in life science research laboratories.

Basic automation like mosaicing of tissue slides or multiwell plate screening in 2D and 3D are part of the starting packages. More sophisticated demands are satisfied by intelligent microscopy: five new auto foci, single object tracking or automated control of water objectives always deliver excellent results.

Storage and analysis is as important as generating thousands of images, therefore the new export formats are compatible with the Open Microscopy Environment image file format for biological image data, OME.TIFF. Standard TIFF-files can be read by any modern image analysis software, too.

 Leica Microsystems developed the Computer Aided Microscopy (CAM) interface to enable customisation of the microscope. By remote control of the imaging process, the detection of rare events such as mitosis phases is possible. Sophisticated algorithms can analyze images on the fly and report the target coordinates to the instrument via the programming interface CAM. Immediately, the pre-scan switches to high-resolution zoom-in mode and starts to image the target cells directly, offering excellent perspectives for a new type of experiments.

Leica HCS A is designed for the core confocal platform systems. Users can choose between the Leica TCS SP5 broadband confocal, the Leica TCS LSI to visualize specimen from micro to macro scale, or the Leica TCS SPE, known for ease of use and robustness.