Research at Pitt Public Health has entered a new era of cellular discovery, thanks to a piece of technology that has eliminated a barrier on campus.
In March 2024, the Office of the Dean and three departments within Pitt Public Health—Infectious Diseases and Microbiology, Environmental and Occupational Health and Human Genetics—collaborated to purchase a confocal microscope using instrumentation funds from the Office of Senior Vice Chancellor for Research.
“Investing in this state-of-the-art confocal microscope represents a pivotal step forward for our school,” said Maureen Lichtveld, MD, MPH, dean of Pitt Public Health. “By bringing this advanced technology directly into our building, we are not only breaking down physical barriers to research but also collaborating to create public health breakthroughs.”
“This collaboration resulted in an extremely beneficial purchase for the entire school,” said Quasar Padiath, PhD, chair of the department of human genetics. “Having the microscope on the second floor of our building has completely transformed our research workflow.”
The confocal microscope—which costs between $500,000 and $600,000—is a top-of-the-line system that allows researchers to observe proteins at a cellular level and capture extremely high-resolution images of cells and organisms.
Although there are other confocal microscopes in the School of Medicine, these were sometimes difficult to access, and sensitive samples often did not survive the trip. In the two years since Pitt Public Health acquired the microscope, however, its popularity has skyrocketed.
“The microscope is booked solid every single hour because the demand is so high,” said Padiath. “It is actively utilized across multiple departments, and our building managers do a wonderful job coordinating its heavy schedule. Even through challenging times, it has been a fantastic story of institutional collaboration.”
Projects utilizing the microscope span a wide variety of research within the school. For Beth Roman, PhD, an associate professor of human genetics, her lab uses the microscope for live zebrafish imaging.
“With our previous setup, capturing the dynamic vascular changes in live zebrafish was incredibly difficult,” said Roman. “This confocal microscope allows us to see cellular behavior in real-time with great clarity, changing what our lab can achieve.”
Across all departments, Padiath said several grants and papers have been submitted based entirely on the microscope’s images.
Joshua Matilla, PhD, associate professor of infectious diseases and microbiology, said the department uses the microscope to capture highly detailed images of cells, tissues, bacteria and viruses. The technology allows them to see how different cells and pathogens interact, helping them better understand the processes behind infection and disease.
Some researchers also use the microscope to observe living cells and lab-grown organoids over time, revealing how cells move, communicate and respond to their surroundings.
“Without the confocal microscope, some of our research would have been so painful and time-consuming that we likely wouldn’t have attempted it,” Padiath said. “It’s a wonderful example of everyone in our school working together to elevate our collective research capabilities.
-Ava Dzurenda