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http://listserv.acsu.buffalo.edu/cgi-bin/wa?S1=confocalDear all,
We are in the process of purchasing a new confocal microscope for live cell
imaging and have been testing the different brands.
Both microscopes are producing comparable images of standard stained
samples, however, the 710 has a little lower background. They claim among
other things that it is due to an angle change in the light/beamsplitter setup
that secures higher sensitivity, but also I think they are using a digital
algorithm to lower the signal to noise ratio. Does anyone have any knowledge
about this?
Also, the amplifier gain on the LSM710, is a digital amplification, but this should
not be able to change the S/N ratio, or?
We found that we need alot less laser power using the LSM710 (0.5% of a 561
DPPS laser) compared to the SP5 (4% of 561 DPSS laser) with terms of getting
the same signal from a Rhodamine labelled nanoparticle internalized in
endosomes. The difficulty in this comparison is that we did not have a sensor
to measure the actual photons hitting the sample in the confocal plane. If this
difference in laser power (and thereby photons for excitation) is true, this
would mean that the LSM710 is alot more sensitive. Unfortunately, due to
endosome fusion it was not possible to detect differences in the bleaching of
the samples we managed to test within our timeframe. Does anyone have any
experience/knowledge about a difference in sensitivity between these two
microscopes.
Best regards, Thomas
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