Setup for video-microscopy of biological molecular motors

The set-up consists of an inverted optical microscope (Olympus IX70) equipped with a CCD camera (Dage-MTI) and a temperature-controlled (5- 80^oC, Linkam) stage for investigation of biological specimen.

Biological motors (in our laboratory the rotary molecular motor F1-ATPase), labeled via affinity tags (e.g. biotin, streptavidin) with large probes such as micro- and nano-beads, are immobilized on slide glasses and observed in real time. Motor movement is analyzed by custom-made software in terms of motor speed, torque, pauses, or dwell times in response to experimental parameters (temperature, source and stability of motor, substrate or inhibitor concentration). Below a picture of the microscope setup:



Contact Person at LCVU: Dirk Bald, email: dirk.bald@falw.vu.nl