QuantomiX Introduces the QX-capsule, a Nanotechnology-based Tissue Culture Dish that Enables Direct Electron Microscopy of Fully Hydrated Cells and Other Wet Specimens.Business Editors/Health/Medical Writers BIOWIRE2K SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 11, 2003 New Research Capabilities Introduced to Scientific Community at American Society for Cell Biology Cell biology The study of the activities, functions, properties, and structures of cells. Cells were discovered in the middle of the seventeenth century after the microscope was invented. Meeting For the first time, scientists can directly image cells in their native wet environment with a standard scanning electron microscope scan·ning electron microscope n. Abbr. SEM An electron microscope that forms a three-dimensional image on a cathode-ray tube by moving a beam of focused electrons across an object and reading both the electrons scattered by the object and (SEM), thanks to new technology to be introduced by QuantomiX at the annual meeting of the American Society for Cell Biology in San Francisco San Francisco (săn frănsĭs`kō), city (1990 pop. 723,959), coextensive with San Francisco co., W Calif., on the tip of a peninsula between the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay, which are connected by the strait known as the Golden , CA on December 13-17, 2003. The company will showcase its technology and products, as well as their novel application in the fields of obesity, diabetes, and central nervous system research in exhibits and a workshop to be held for ASCB ASCB American Society for Cell Biology ASCB Avionics Standard Communication Bus ASCB Address Space Control Block (MVS) ASCB Arbitrarily-Shaped Conducting Body meeting attendees on December 16. Applying recent advances in nanotechnology, QuantomiX has developed the QX-capsule, which uses an ultra thin membrane that is transparent to an electron beam A stream of electrons, or electricity, that is directed towards a receiving object. See electron beam imaging and electron beam lithography. but impervious to water and sufficiently strong to resist a 1-atmosphere pressure difference. The capsule is used as a culture dish to separate the wet specimens from the SEM vacuum. It enables researchers to directly image unstained, unfixed cells and tissues, including the imaging of entire cell membranes and internal structures with any SEM. "We are happy to introduce cell biologists to an affordable, easy-to-use device that combines the convenience of light microscopy with a resolution that until now characterized only electron microscopy electron microscopy Technique that allows examination of samples too small to be seen with a light microscope. Electron beams have much smaller wavelengths than visible light and hence higher resolving power. ," said Ory Zik, Ph.D., QuantomiX's chief executive officer. "Previously, all biological and other water-containing samples had to be fixed and dehydrated de·hy·drate v. de·hy·drat·ed, de·hy·drat·ing, de·hy·drates v.tr. 1. To remove water from; make anhydrous. 2. To preserve by removing water from (vegetables, for example). before they could be introduced to the vacuum inside the microscope viewing chamber, making it impossible to image such wet samples directly with an SEM." Dr. Zik continued, "One of the challenges we faced was how to turn such a technological advancement into a useful and affordable product. Our single-use device, introduced today at the ASCB, fits existing electron microscopes but transforms their capabilities, giving cell biologists and pharmaceutical researchers entirely new research capabilities. For example, QuantomiX collaborators have gained a unique advantage for imaging the size and distribution cellular lipids in research aimed at improving the diagnosis and management of diseases such as obesity and diabetes." "QuantomiX's QX-capsule enabled us to quantitatively study lipid accumulation, in a way that we could not do before," said Barbara Corkey, Ph.D., professor of medicine and biochemistry and director, Obesity Research Center, Boston Medical Center Boston Medical Center (BMC) is a non-profit 581-bed medical center in Boston, Massachusetts. It was created by the formal merger of Boston City Hospital (BCH) and Boston University Medical Center Hospital (BUMCH). , Boston University. Dr. Corkey, a national leader in obesity research, also heads the North American North American named after North America. North American blastomycosis see North American blastomycosis. North American cattle tick see boophilusannulatus. Organization for the Study of Obesity (NAASO NAASO North American Association for the Study of Obesity ). QuantomiX has currently collaborations with scientists at major research institutions in the United States and Israel to further develop its products and technology, including its use in future medical diagnostic and industrial applications. The company plans to make its products available to the U.S. research market in the first quarter of 2004. About QuantomiX QuantomiX Ltd. is a company that provides solutions for the problems of rapid high-resolution imaging for improved research diagnostics and drug discovery. The company was founded in 2001 by Ory Zik, Ph.D. and Michael Brunstein, Ph.D., both of whom built their experience in the semiconductor industry where they specialized in automated scanning electron microscopes. The QuantomiX R&D Center is located in Rehovot, Israel and the company is establishing a U.S. headquarters in the Boston, Massachusetts area. QuantomiX is a privately held, venture-backed company whose major investors include Pitango Venture Capital, the leading venture capital firm in Israel and VitaLife, an Israeli-based life sciences venture fund. |
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