CHU Sainte-Justine Research Center opens cutting-edge microscopy platform in partnership with Leica Microsystems

Left to right: Elke Küster-Schöck, Lianne Dale, Gilles Hickson, Graziella Di Cristo, Jacques L. Michaud, and Wayne England.

This platform is the latest of Leica Microsystems’ partnerships with research facilities across the world dedicated to helping top academic institutions provide tools that accelerate scientific discovery. The platform houses 11 state-of-the-art imaging systems from simple epi-fluorescence to confocal and super-resolution light microscopy. This range enables scientists to investigate a variety of experimental systems at different scales, from single molecules to entire living organisms.

“We are thrilled to be partnering with CHU Sainte-Justine Research Center in addressing the needs of the scientific community here, as well as providing a great new resource for microscopy imaging in the Montreal Region,” said Wayne England, Sales Director for Leica Microsystems Canada. “We believe that a close relationship between industry and academia strongly reinforces the Leica Microsystems commitment to researchers in uncovering new insights into biological processes. Leica offers a complete portfolio of imaging products, including several unique technologies that can directly facilitate such advances. We look forward to the discoveries that will result from the new tools that are now available at CHU Sainte-Justine Research Center, and sharing our knowledge, insights and passion for scientific exploration.”

Drs. Graziella Di Cristo, researcher at the CHU Sainte-Justine Research Center and associate professor in the Department of Neurosciences at Université de Montréal, and Gilles Hickson, researcher at the CHU Sainte-Justine Research Center and associate research professor in the Department of Pathology and Cellular Biology at Université de Montréal, have been named the Center’s Directors. Together with Dr. Elke Küster-Schöck, the platform manager with extensive experience in imaging, core facility management and research, they will provide expert technical guidance and support to the researchers utilizing the facility.

“We are honoured to open this state-of-the-art platform and provide a direct link between the scientific researchers, the academic community and the product specialists at Leica,” said Dr. Jacques L. Michaud, the Research Center’s Scientific Director. “The CHU Sainte-Justine Research Center is at the forefront of research for pediatric diseases, and having the latest equipment is essential to keep our research at the cutting edge. We will continue to work closely with Leica to develop and enhance the equipment to continually meet the needs of these scientists.”

As part of the partnership agreement, and thanks to investments from the Sainte-Justine Foundation Grandir en santé campaign and the Canadian Foundation for Innovation, Leica Microsystems has provided 11 high-end microscope systems. They are housed in a brand-new facility in the newly opened Research Center building.

Leica Microsystems and the CHU Sainte-Justine celebrated the platform inauguration at a ceremony on Monday, September 18, 2017.

About Leica Microsystems

Leica Microsystems develops and manufactures microscopes and scientific instruments for the analysis of microstructures and nanostructures. Ever since the company started as a family business in the nineteenth century, its instruments have been widely recognized for their optical precision and innovative technology. It is one of the market leaders in compound and stereo microscopy, digital microscopy, confocal laser scanning microscopy with related imaging systems, electron microscopy sample preparation, and surgical microscopes.

Leica Microsystems has seven major plants and product development sites around the world. The company is represented in over 100 countries, has sales and service organizations in 20 countries, and an international network of distribution partners. Its headquarters are located in Wetzlar, Germany.

About the CHU Sainte-Justine Research Center

CHU Sainte-Justine Research Center is a leading mother-child research institution affiliated with Université de Montréal. It brings together more than 200 research investigators, including over 90 clinician-scientists, as well as 450 graduate and postgraduate students focused on finding innovative prevention means, faster and less invasive treatments, as well as personalized approaches to medicine. The Center is part of CHU Sainte-Justine, which is the largest mother-child center in Canada and second pediatric center in North America. More on research.chusj.org

About CHU Sainte-Justine

The Sainte-Justine university hospital centre (CHU Sainte-Justine) is the largest mother-child centre in Canada and the second largest pediatric hospital in North America. A member of the Université de Montréal extended network of excellence in health (RUIS), Sainte-Justine has 5,457 employees, including 1,532 nurses and nursing assistants; 1,000 other healthcare professionals; 520 physicians, dentists and pharmacists; 822 residents  and over 204 researchers; 411 volunteers; and 4,416 interns and students in a wide range of disciplines. Sainte-Justine has 484 beds, including 67 at the Centre de réadaptation Marie Enfant (CRME), the only exclusively pediatric rehabilitation centre in Quebec. The World Health Organization has recognized CHU Sainte-Justine as a “health promoting hospital.” chusj.org

Source

Maude Hoffmann
Communications, CHU Sainte-Justine Research Center
communications@recherche-ste-justine.qc.ca

Media contact

Daniel Kaplan
Manager Marketing Communications
Leica Microsystems, Americas
Office:  847-821-3509
daniel.kaplan@leica-microsystems.com 

Media contact

Mélanie Dallaire
Senior consultant, Media Relations
CHU Sainte-Justine
Office: 514-345-7707 / Pager: 514-415-5727
melanie.dallaire.hsj@ssss.gouv.qc.ca