BIO – Sarah Ellis
Manager, Microscopy Imaging and Research Core Facility – Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre
Sarah Ellis manages the microscopy imaging and research core facility at Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre. The microscopy core is a world-class facility encompassing all aspects of microscopy from immunofluorescence/laser capture microscopy through to transmission electron microscopy.
As well as managing the facility, which includes training staff and students, and maintaining, evaluating and purchasing equipment, Sarah collaborates on various research projects both from within Peter Mac and also with researchers from other medical research institutions and universities. With over 20 years experience in all aspects of microscopy, Sarah’s considerable skill-base is an asset to researchers at Peter Mac and the wider scientific community.
Current research projects include the investigation of cancer cell/tissue morphology and the localisation and role of specific proteins involved in various cell functions including cell cycle, maintenance of cell shape, and cell death. Proteins of interest can be identified under the microscopes using fluorescent tags. The dedicated live cell microscope and the newly acquired spectral laser scanning confocal microscope permit the examination of proteins as they move around live cells. A state-of-the-art laser capture microscope utilises a laser to ‘capture’ cancer cells from sections of tissue. The DNA specific to the cancer cell can then be examined to determine key proteins involved in the development of the cancer.
The most powerful microscope housed in the core facility is the transmission electron microscope, which is used for examining structures and proteins at a level not possible with any other microscope. This microscope can easily resolve structures within a single cell. Small (< one millionth of a millimetre) gold particles conjugated to antibodies are used to tag proteins of interest. The microscopy core is an outstanding example of how equipment too expensive and complicated for individual laboratories to purchase can be utilised to assist a large number of researchers with their cancer research projects.
