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BIDDEFORD, Maine

Confocal microscope the focus of new photo exhibit at UNE

Winning entries from the University of New England’s First Annual Student Confocal Microscope Digital Image Competition will be on display in a unique photo exhibit at UNE’s Biddeford Campus Center from August 30 to October 3.

The microscopic world can reveal a bottomless spectacle on common models of study, including fruit flies and neurons. The aim of the inaugural competition was to make UNE’s confocal scanning laser microscope more accessible to all students.

The competition was broken down into two categories: altered and unaltered images. Students who entered images into the unaltered category were barred from changing their images in any way after collecting the image using the Leica software. This category was aimed towards science students.

Students who submitted altered images were allowed to adjust brightness, enhance color and add personal touches to their images; this category was created to encourage students from all disciplines to participate, including art students.

The confocal uses lasers as a light source, which is scanned over a sample containing fluorescent labels. Only the "confocal" fluorescent signal collected by the microscope optics and passed through an adjustable pinhole aperture is used to create an image. Off-axis and out-of-focus signals are blocked, enabling collection of thin optical sections that can be combined to generate high-resolution 3D images. Researchers may use multiple dyes within a sample to analyze cellular relationships. MCF’s confocal system can scan at video rate to allow for live cell analysis. The confocal was purchased with NSF Grant #1125672.

The photo exhibit is free and open to the public. Hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. In addition, calendars featuring the winning images will be available this fall at the Biddeford Campus bookstore. 

About the University of New England

The University of New England is Maine’s largest independent university, with two beautiful coastal campuses in Maine, a one-of-a-kind study abroad campus in Tangier, Morocco, and an array of flexible, accredited online degrees. In an uncommonly welcoming and supportive community, we offer hands-on learning, empowering students to make a positive impact in a world full of challenges. The state’s top provider of health professionals, we are home to Maine’s only medical college, Maine’s only dental college, a variety of other interprofessionally aligned health care degree programs, as well as nationally recognized programs for marine science degrees, natural and social sciences degrees, arts and humanities degrees, and business degrees.