by Veronika Collovati

EMBL’s imaging centre makes advanced microscopy technologies accessible to the international scientific community.

The EMBL Imaging Centre as viewed from the outside. Credit: Kinga Lubowiecka/EMBL

It was in August 2017 – five years ago – that EMBL received funding approval for its state-of-the-art Imaging Centre that officially opened in June this year.

Located in Heidelberg, EMBL’s Imaging Centre started welcoming researchers in September 2021 after the building’s construction was completed, well within the projected two-year goal after laying the foundation stone. Since then, EMBL scientists have set up operations, had visits from scientific users, provided training, and held its first scientific symposium.

The new Imaging Centre is the culmination of expertise EMBL has had all along and provides the global scientific community – in academia and industry – with access to the latest, most advanced imaging technologies to enable ground-breaking research.

One key strength is how it trains users on cutting-edge imaging technologies, including super-resolution light and correlative light and electron microscopy approaches, such as cryo-electron microscopy that Nobel prize winner Jacques Dubochet developed while at EMBL.

It additionally provides access to completely new technologies not yet commercially available, and users are supported during their entire experimental cycle, from sample preparation to data analysis. To enable this, EMBL is working with leading technology developers from academia and industry.

This article was first published on EMBL News