How to become PFMU user?

Electron Microscopy Facility (PFMU) welcomes researchers of the Medical Faculty, wider University of Geneva community, as well as external researchers from academia and industry:

1. Contact Bohumil Maco (facility Scientific coordinator) to arrange  the meeting to discuss your electron microscopy project ideas, goals, expected outcomes to identify the best stategy and methodology for yours particular needs
2. Member(s) of your group can be trained for independent use of the TEM microscopes, ultramicrotomes, sputter coater and glow-discharge apparatus (consult the Price List section)
3. After competed training user will be provided with credentials to the reservation system for independent use of the TEMs
4. PFMU staff can provide you an assistance with the training for the required technigues and on the associated equipment

Guidelines to use PFMU services

To use PFMU services e.g. sample preparation and equipment usage (consult Services and Price List sections):

1. Download the Sample Submission Form, fill it out and submitt it to pfmu(at)unige.ch before your sample drop off

2. Sample drop off to process: bring your chemically fixed sample to the PFMU office 🏢 C06.2137.A and put it (them) in the fridge on the left (we advice to call PFMU staff beforehand)

   3rd shelve from the top: orange rack: for cryo-sectioning and immuno-gold labelling white rack: for TEM  or ASV (Auto Slice and View for FIBSEM) blue rack: for freeze fracturing

    

3. Once your sample is processed and EM grids with your sample/sections are made, you will be notify by PFMU staff via e-mail and you can collect them for your TEM imaging from the same office (table on the right)

4. Monthly bills for PFMU services will be send directly to your PI

5. For performing the negative staining procedure and using uranyl acetate, user HAS TO PROVIDE certificate to PFMU of the completed training to work with radioactive material and radiation protection training organized by STEPS (here is the link):

• Dangers of radioactivity and basics of radiation protection - theorical part (1.5 hr) and
• Good practices in a C lab - practical course (1.5 hr)

Other important guidelines

• If you publish any materials generated or imaged by PFMU, we would appreciate to
  • to acknowledge The Electron Microscopy Facility (PFMU) of the Medical Faculty at the University of Geneva either in the Matherial and Method section of your paper or at least in the Acknowledgement sections
  • to provide us with copy or link to your published paper, for facility Publications section and for facilty work reporting purposes

• If you have any problem with TEMs or other PFMU equipment, please, ALWAYS contact PFMU staff FIRST, to help you to fix the problem
  • keep in mind the EM equipment is quite costly and repairs can take significant amount of time resulting the inaccecibility of the particular piece of equipment to othe users

• Users are solely responsible to manage the back up of their acquired images or any digital data
  • TEMs images are temporally stored on the second computer PC, next to each our TEM machine
  • at the end of the TEM session, is user responsibility to copy the data to the sucure location for later use and back up
  • data older than 1 year can be deleted by PFMU without notice in order to free hard drive free space