James Wesley-Smith Email & Phone Number

For 30+ years, I have been involved in microscopy-based research and tuition at Universities and Science Councils. The experienced I gained across a broad range of life and material science fields during that time has provided me with an enabling platform from which I can further impact scientific research and the development of much-needed microscopy skills. I have developed in-depth awareness of suitable sample preparation and imaging approaches if one is to get artefact- (deformation) free information from the samples of interest. While in most instances conventional preparation methods are suitable, in many others they are not. Using cryotechniques I have been able to access reliable information that wouldn't have been not possible with conventional (chemical) processing protocols. For example, in pulp and paper studies, I used freeze drying to visualise the development of microfibrils on wood fibres following beating, stages of cellulose degradation in dissolving pulp, and microtomy of embedded samples to study paper structure. In polymer nanocomposites studies, I routinely use cryosectioning not only to obtain sections for TEM but also cryo-planed SEM block faces to measure the thickness of layers in laminates, or to access the dispersion of nanocomposites, over much larger areas. Of course oil / water mixtures in foodstuffs and cosmetics are inaccessible by conventional imaging, as are aqueous fixation of partially hydrated living and non-living samples. And the list goes on (but I won't!)There is also a dire need to strengthen the microscopy skills of operators in many laboratories. In spite of the ever-increasing ease of use and capabilities of scanning and transmission electron microscopes, most operators - of course with notable exception - stick to the well-trodden routine operation without exploring the full capabilities of the instrument or its attachments, such as elemental microanalysis (EDS), cryo-transfer systems or tomography. The sample preparation caveat of "rubbish in, rubbish out" is often overlooked and evident in the outputs. This could be due either to staff turnover, or simply lack of applications training. Last is the often neglected quantification of information contained in images using freely available platforms such as ImageJ/Fiji. If it can be seen it can be measured, making results available for statistical analysis to attach a measure of confidence to the results reported. It is plain good science!I hope this provides you, the reader, with examples of the of the areas I am targeting in this new venture.

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  University Of Natal, Durban, South Africa

  Cell Biology - Cryobiology