#1 - Helmchen Lab, Brain Research Institute, University of Zurich, Switzerland
The oldest mesoSPIM saw first light in October 2015 (as a Version 0). The most recent upgrade in May 2018 brought it up to Version 4. The microscope is accessible within collaborations with the Helmchen lab.
#2 - Aguzzi Lab, Institute of Neuropathology, University Hospital Zurich, Switzerland
The second oldest mesoSPIM was set up as a Version 3 in July 2017 and upgraded to V4 in May 2018.
#3 - Advanced Lightsheet Imaging Center, Wyss Center, Geneva, Switzerland
The first mesoSPIM outside of Zurich saw first light as a Version 4 in March 2018. It is open to users from both academia and industry. The facility also contains a CLARITY-optimized light-sheet microscope (COLM) for high-resolution imaging.
#4 - Center for Microscopy and Image Analysis, University of Zurich, Switzerland
mesoSPIM #4 was set up in May 2018 by Fabian Voigt, and upgraded in 2023 by Nikita Vladimirov. It is open to users of the Center for Microscopy and Image Analysis (UZH labs, partner institutes and private companies). It features 5 plan apochromat objectives (2x - 20x) and a motorized revolver from Mitutoyo, along with large-sensor camera Hamamatsu Orca Lightning.
#5 - Advanced Microscopy Facility, Sainsbury Wellcome Centre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour, London, UK
The fifth mesoSPIM (and the first outside of Switzerland) became operational in December 2018.
#6 - Aguzzi Lab, Institute of Neuropathology, University Hospital Zurich, Switzerland
The first mesoSPIM V5 was set up in early August 2019. Together with mesoSPIM #2, it forms a high-throughput imaging platform.
#7 - Systems Biology Imaging Platform, Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine, Berlin, Germany
The instrument was built by Andrew Woehler and took its first images in late August 2019.
#8 - Fu Yu’s lab at Singapore Bioimaging Consortium, A*STAR, Singapore
The instrument was built by Menghan Wang and took its first images in September 2019.
#9 - Ertürk lab at the Institute for Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, Helmholtz Center Munich, Germany
The instrument was built by Tzu-Lun Wang, Mihail Todorov and Fabian F. Voigt and took its first images on November 8th, 2019.
#10 - Busche lab at the UK Dementia Research Institute, University College London, UK
The instrument was set up by Bruno Pichler and his team at Independent Neuroscience Services in late December, 2019.
#11 - Oertner lab at the Institute for Synaptic Physiology - Center for Molecular Neurobiology Hamburg (ZMNH), Germany.
The instrument became operational in Summer 2020.
#12 - Microscopy Innovation Lab, University of Texas Southwestern, Dallas, USA
The first mesoSPIM in the United States was set up by Saumya Vora and Kevin Dean in Summer 2020.
#13 - Allen Institute for Brain Science, Seattle, USA
The first mesoSPIM on the West Coast was set up by Rusty Nicovich in 2020.
#14 - Prospective Instruments, Dornbirn, Austria
This mesoSPIM became operational in Summer 2021 and is accessible via the Prospective Instruments Imaging Service.
#15 - OptoCARD Lab, Institute of Clinical Physiology (IFC), CNR, Florence, Italy
The first mesoSPIM in Italy was set up by Leonardo Sacconi in the summer of 2021. The microscope is used for reconstructing cleared whole mouse hearts. The detection arm uses large-sensor back-illuminated sCMOS camera with a high-resolution 2X telecentric lens.
#16 - National Facility for Translational Medicine, Shanghai, China
The first mesoSPIM in China was set up in the group of Prof. Chunhai Fan as a apart of Biological Perspective project. The mesoSPIM was set up in October 2022 and its application is focused on brain imaging and studying intact human tissue. The imaging samples are mouse brains and other model organisms. Contact: Dr. Zhaoshuai Gao.
#17 - Eli and Edythe L. Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, USA
The Broad mesoSPIM is part of the Optical Profiling Platform led by Sami Farhi. It saw first light in September 2022.
#18 - Lai Lab, Li Ka Shing Institute of Health Sciences, CUHK, Hong Kong
The first MesoSPIM in Hong Kong became operational in November 2022 and was set up by Jacky Hung.
#19 - MDIBL imaging facility (MDIBL-LMF), Bar Harbor, Maine, USA
The mesoSPIM at the MDIBL is the 5th in the USA and it was set up by the Murawala Lab with the help of Dr. Fabian Voigt in December 2022. Its access to the internal and external users is provided via the MDIBL imaging facility (MDIBL-LMF). The mesoSPIM will be used to study developmental and tissue regeneration studies in axolotl and zebrafish, aging studies in zebrafish and African turquoise killifish, and to address brain connectome questions in the mouse.
#20 - Center for Biologic Imaging, University of Pittsburgh, PA, USA
The mesoSPIM at the CBI is the 6th in the USA. It was set up by Profs. Simon Watkins and Alan Watson and Dr. Callen Wallace in February 2023 for imaging bladder, brain, spinal cord, lung and other cleared tissues. This setup was built using Nikon AZ100 zoom body, a creative variation of the original design.
#21, Benchtop mesoSPIM #1 - Helmchen Lab, Brain Research Institute, University of Zurich, Switzerland
The first Benchtop mesoSPIM, started in Helmchen Lab by Fabian Voigt in 2019 and brought to maturity by Nikita Vladimirov in 2021-2023. In summer 2024 it became a full-time facility instrument at the Center for Microscopy and Image Analysis (ZMB), University of Zurich.
#22, (Half-)Benchtop #2 at Microscopy Innovation Lab, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
A variation of Benchtop with only one exitation arm, and the Dean lab’s second mesoSPIM. This system was set up in 2023 by Melissa Glidewell and Dr. Kevin Dean to image cleared mouse tissues and expansion microscopy samples.
#23, Benchtop #3 - Center for Biologic Imaging, University of Pittsburgh, PA, USA
A variation of Benchtop with Nikon AZ100 detection objectives, custom immersion cuvette mount, and several other minor tweaks so it matches their other system. Second mesoSPIM at CBI, built in September 2023 to expand the facility’s imaging capacity of zebrafish, rat knees, mouse brains, lungs and other biological samples.
#24, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Glasgow, Scotland, UK
The first mesoSPIM in Scotland was set up in the cardiophotonics team of Dr. Caroline Müllenbroich at the University of Glasgow to image structural remodelling of rabbit hearts due to myocardial infarction. The system was built by Drs. Sharika Mohanan and Steven Moreno and took first images in October 2023.
#25 (Benchtop #4), St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA
This Benchtop mesoSPIM was setup in 2024 for 3D image-studies of diffuse and deep-brain tumor development as well as spinal cord and whole neurosystem development and pathology.
mesoSPIM #26 (Benchtop #5), Biozentrum, University of Basel, Switzerland
Benchtop built by Kai Schleicher with the help of Rob Campbell, Sara Roig (3D printing) and Niko Ehrenfeuchter (mesoSPIM-control installation), in-house electronics workshop, mechanical workshop and research instrumentation facility. The setup saw its first light in August 2024 and is mostly used for imaging cleared mouse brains.
mesoSPIM #27 (Benchtop #6), Department of Biomedical Molecular Biology, Ghent University, Belgium
The first mesoSPIM setup in Belgium, built by Thomas Naert, is a canonical benchtop mesoSPIM located at the Flemish Institute for Biotechnology (VIB) in the Inflammation Research Center at Ghent University. This imaging platform is used to visualize cleared tumors and organs, enabling large-scale research into immune interactions. It is also applied to image entire Xenopus and zebrafish embryos, facilitating whole-animal studies into rare genetic conditions.
mesoSPIM #28 (Benchtop #7 with a motorized turret), The OiVM Core at the Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
The OiVM Core routinely images adult mouse and rat organs (including lung, heart, brain, spinal cord, limb/joints, kidney) via our own tissue clearing method (EZClear, Hsu et al. eLife, 2022). Built by core director Jason Kirk, this mesoSPIM took its first images in September of 2024. Modifications from original design include vertical stage mount hybrid for clearance of objective turret; use of TTL-200 tube lens to reduce path length (shrinks table size requirements); 3D printed temperature probe mounts for monitoring galvo temp; and custom enclosure with laser safety circuits to close Oxxius shutters when cover is open.
mesoSPIM #29 (Benchtop #8), UCL Cancer Institute, London, UK
Modified Benchtop built by Tchern Lenn at the CRUK City of London Center Microscopy and Imaging Translational Technology Platform. It is housed at the UCL Cancer Institute and currently uses 5 laser lines, with an option to add 6th in the future.
upcoming #30 (Benchtop #9), France
upcoming #31 (Benchtop #10), Switzerland
upcoming #32 (Benchtop #11), Germany
upcoming #33 (Benchtop #12), France
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