Center for Biologic Imaging: Policies and Procedures

Introduction.

            The Center for Biologic Imaging (CBI) is one of the largest optical imaging centers in the country.  Because of the richness of resources both in equipment and expertise, it cannot be considered a core in the classical sense in which services are billed to users. Only very rarely do we charge users to use the resources in the facility, rather we try to develop collaborative interactions with research teams such that funding is primarily derived from “co-funded” grants.  We feel that this builds an intellectual camaraderie in which we as faculty within the center contribute to the research goals of investigators or teams of investigators such that an optimal experimental solution is achieved. 

            Importantly, we believe in a very open door philosophy in which we always try to provide access to expertise and equipment with minimal barriers.  However, to do this and protect against abuse we expect users to respect our usage policies.

 

New User Access

            We expect and require that if you are a new user of the center the head of your lab will contact the center director (Simon Watkins) or one of the other faculty (Donna Stolz, Katy Baty or Claudette St. Croix) in the center directly.   Contact information is at http://www.cbi.pitt.edu/contact/index.html.  Equally If you are an established user interested in starting a new project or expanding an existing project,  your should discuss it with the faculty in the Center with whom you have an established working relationship. In each case, you should feel free to contact the director at any time, if you have problems using the services and resources offered by the center.

 

Levels of User Access

·      Initially usage for all users is restricted to standard working hours during the week.  This is simply to ensure that if you have difficulties using a piece of equipment there will be someone around to solve the problem.  Please do not attempt to reserve or use equipment outside these hours unless you have either received specific permission from the CBI faculty or have after hours access. 

·      Users who have satisfied the faculty and staff of their competence may request after hours access.  This is at two levels, “after hours Monday to Friday” and “24/7”.  While we recognize that some instrumentation is heavily booked and after hours access is an attractive solution to users, you must be able to demonstrate true competence before asking for after hours access.

·      Image processing access is at any time during the working day. 

Training

·      ALL training on ALL instruments MUST BE PERFORMED BY CBI STAFF.  This is a simple but absolutely mandatory rule

·      NO training should be provided by colleagues, if you are found using instruments which you have not been trained on, we will be forced to remove user privileges for a month and until you have been appropriately trained by CBI staff.

·      All training is organized in group sessions led by either Jason Devlin, Morgan Nelson or Greg Gibson.  Please Contact Jason (jdevlin@pitt.edu) for training. 

Reservations

The reservation system is entirely computerized.  We need to make sure that all users employ the computer sign up system for all reservations.

·      ALL reservations should be made through the CBI website.

·      We do not allow adhoc usage.  If you want to use a piece of equipment which is idle on walk up, please check the scheduler if its available just sign up for it.

·      If you have reserved a piece of equipment and cannot use your time you must cancel your time, if you fail to do so 3 times you will lose user privileges for a month.

·      If you have reserved a piece of equipment and are 15 minutes late, another user is allowed to use your time.

·      Please arrange your experiments such that you can finish your imaging session at the appropriate time, and such that the next user does not have to wait.

·      All users may book no more than 3 x 3 hour sessions/week on any class of microscope, unless there is time available on the day of use.  For example we have multiple Olympus Fluoviews, you may only book 3 sessions a week on the Fluoviews.  However, if a slot opens up on a given day you may use it.

·      If a user is running late due to travel time (shuttles from remote sites such as Hillman, Children’s, 2^nd Avenue sites, etc), a courtesy call would be appreciated to reserve the remaining time.  412-648-9796 (Light lab), 412-648-8865 (EM lab).

·      Users may not schedule time more than one month in advance.

Looking after equipment and the Center

The CBI imaging suite is a very very busy place, what we ask is that you show a responsible and courteous approach to using the equipment in the Center.

·      If you don’t know or are not sure what you are doing please ask CBI staff for help.

·      If you don’t know or are not sure what you are doing do not get help from another user.

·      Please do not install anything on CBI computers.

·      Please do not move any equipment in imaging suite, carts, incubators, chambers etc.

·      If the microscope seems to be performing less well than it should please ask CBI staff do not try to fix the problem yourself.

·      Do Not let people into the imaging suite.  If they are supposed to be there they will have an ID that will let them in.  You may lose user privileges if you do.

·      Do Not block the door open. You may lose user privileges if you do.

·      Clean up after yourself, leave the microscope as you would like to find it.

·      Please do not change the room thermostats, ask CBI staff if it feels to warm or too cold.

 

Getting enough time on the microscopes.

We recognize that some of our instruments are very heavily booked, and we are working hard to provide new instruments to offset the demand.  Some tips to optimize your imaging sessions:

·      Try to be flexible with the instrumentation you use.  All the confocals within the CBI are current models.  While we recognize the Fluoviews are by far the most popular instruments, the Zeiss 510 Meta is a very high quality instrument.  Arrange a training session on that microscope

·      Work after hours: as soon as you have achieved “after hours” usage work outside the normal working day, evenings and early mornings are very quiet.

 

How to plan experiments with CBI staff

Several experimental modalities are generally performed very closely with CBI faculty and staff, and need to be planned appropriately

·      All EM experiments should be planned directly with Donna Stolz (Dstolz@pitt.edu)

·      All  live cell experiments should be planned directly with Katy Baty (CJB16@pitt.edu

·      All  live animal or whole tissue experiments should be planned with Claudette St. Croix (cls13@pitt.edu)

·      Furthermore, each of our faculty have their own specific research interests so if you know, or are already working with one of our faculty continue to do so and they will efficiently work through the design process.  If you are not sure who to get in touch with please contact Simon Watkins (swatkins@pitt.edu)

·      Please do not turn up at the CBI with specimens without prior interaction with faculty and staff.  Your specimens will probably not  be accepted.

·      Please do not ask staff to accept specimens without prior planning with CBI faculty.

Computing and Image processing

 The CBI is equipped with over 200 terabytes of online storage space and most current image analysis packages including Metamorph, NIS Elements, Imaris, Amira, Image Pro, Photoshop and Autoquant’s deconvolution package.  Its very easy to get image processing wrong, which means you can waste huge amounts of time getting poor data out, or perhaps the wrong data.  So please talk to CBI faculty and staff if you are not sure what you are doing

·      You do not need to sign up for time on the CBI image processing facility workstations, all access is first come first served

·      Please get help from Kevin Alber within the Image processing facility if you do not know how to use the package of interest

·      Please ask the director (Simon Watkins) if you need to design an algorithm to extract quantitative data from image sets (he loves this kind of thing).

·      We routinely backup all fixed cell data sets from the widefield, confocal and electron microscopes.  Kevin will help you get this data back if it has been removed from our server.

·      We do not back up live cell data.

·      We encourage you to make copies of your own data and take them with you. 

·      Ultimately you should look after your own data, we do our best to look after it for you but we cannot be responsible if it gets lost.

 

 Acknowledgement of interaction with the CBI.

·      Most investigators will have established solid collaborative interactions with faculty in the CBI, and in common with any collaboration where there is intellectual and experimental contribution to the work performed this is best reflected as co-authorship on subsequent papers.  This involvement will be self –evident.

·      If the interaction is purely technical (you used resources such as equipment etc) then this is not a collaborative interaction, and does not merit involvement in publications.   However,  it is important to the center that you acknowledge our funding and the fact that the CBI contributed to the research as provider of instrumentation.

·      If you are not sure of the best way to acknowledge the CBI or its faculty please contact the appropriate CBI faculty or the director to clarify.

Hazardous materials and waste policy:

·      Any material that may be hazardous (whether biological or chemical) must be preapproved by CBI staff and by Environmental Health & Safety when applicable. 

·      We are no longer approved to work with radioactive specimens.

·      All pathogenic or potentially pathogenic material (all human specimens) must be fixed prior to delivery to the CBI

·      All hazardous waste must be disposed of appropriately (sharps, biohazard, etc)