Milan Drobnak
Our long-term partner Leica Microsystems is one of the leading manufacturers of microscopes in the world. In the more than 170-year history of the manufacture and development of microscopes, we have been able to witness many inventions and advances. These contributed to the introduction of new microscopic techniques and, consequently, to new scientific discoveries. Despite numerous technological upgrades, the shape of the microscope itself did not change significantly.
The stand, table, light, objectives and eyepiece have been the key parts of the microscope for so long that today the microscope is one of the most recognizable and iconic laboratory instruments, and it is presented as such in many films, logos, and you can also find it on the facade of our company.
The Leica Mica is just an elegantly designed white box, in which all the important parts of the microscope that we know are still hidden: the stage, light and objectives, and of course many other technological accessories that make this instrument unique.
Mica is a state-of-the-art multi-functional automated microscope that combines various microscopy technologies into a microscope hub — the microhub, the central microscope in the laboratory. Mica is a multimodal system that allows capturing images in standard (but not so classic) epifluorescence, optodigital method Thunder, confocal mode, with Lightning super resolution option. Captures are possible in 2D or 3D, time-lapse, controlled atmosphere and much more. Despite all the complexity, the system is designed for extreme ease of use. Up to 85% of the steps required in a standard microscope are eliminated, and as a result, significantly less time and learning is spent on image capture, and someone with basic knowledge can start using it immediately.
A unique part of the Mice is the FluoSync technology developed by Leica. FluoSync is an integrated part of the Mice that allows simultaneous visualization of 4 fluorescence channels. If it was previously believed that the acquisition of individual channels was only possible with sequential acquisition, researchers can now truly capture 4 channels simultaneously, which was previously only possible with confocal systems with multiple detectors. Thanks to FluoSnyc, all four channels are 100% correlated, which is especially important when observing fast life processes in cells.
We have already presented Mica to the Slovenian professional public at a meeting of Slovenian microscopists in Ankaran in May this year. Soon, however, we will have the opportunity to test the device live.