Facilities and Services in the Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine
Laboratory services overview
The department houses a variety of equipment for biological analyses, seminar rooms for hire and offers services in histology and electron microscopy (EM). All users of the facilities and equipment are required to undertake training where appropriate and to comply with health and safety policies and procedures of the department and University.
Equipment and services available for use:
- Costs
- Histology services
- Electron Microscopy
- Other microscopy services - light microscopes, intereference contrast microscope, confocal microscope , laser capture microscopy
- Pathology Museum
Costs
All hire and use of departmental facilities and services (e.g. histology and electron microscopy) need to be paid for. Please contact the department for prices. These should be factored into any project budgets/grants.
email : robyn.lutzenburger@otago.ac.nz
Histology services
The histology laboratory can provide a range of histological services including:
Tissue fixation, processing and sectioning
Standard H&E staining
Special stains
Immunohistochemistry
Cryotomy
We currently use the Tissuetek VIP 5 processor
Please contact the department to discuss histological work required:
email : robyn.lutzenburger@otago.ac.nz
Electron Microscopy (EM)
The EM unit has been providing a transmission EM service for clinical and research work since the school opened in 1975. It plays an important role in clinical diagnosis of disease, especially renal disease. We receive a variety of clinical samples including, but not limited to, renal, muscle, nerve, cardiac and liver biopsies and samples for viral identification. The EM unit also provides services for biological research to University of Otago researchers and outside users.
The unit currently houses a Phillips CM 100 Bio transmission electron microscope. Images can be produced in hard copy and digitally.
Dr Wakefield is the senior academic researcher and specialist in EM in the department. Please discuss any EM service or project requirements with him.
Other Microscopy
The Pathology department houses a number of other microscopes. These include
- light microscope
- intereference contrast microscope
- confocal microscope
- laser capture microscope. The laser capture microscope (LCM) selectively excises cells or cell groups from multicellular tissue and allows for DNA or RNA analysis from paraffin or frozen sections.
These are available to hire for use on an hourly basis. Should training or labour be required this will be an additional cost. Some microscopes have cameras attached to capture images.
Please contact the department for prices and appropriate contacts for advice.
email : robyn.lutzenburger@otago.ac.nz
Pathology Museum
The Pathology museum currently houses an invaluable collection of specimens demonstrating the workings of the human body and disease. It is an essential tool for the training of medical students and health professionals. The Pathology Museum is also available for use by hospital staff and other education groups. Should you wish to have a tour or seminar please contact Dr Wakefield.
An update of the Pathology Museum is planned for the near future to meet the needs of teaching, research and community awareness in the 21st Century. This coincides with many universities around the world, e.g. University of British Columbia, taking remedial action to re-establish and re-invigorate their pathology museums.