Schwabe: MIM-N Laser microscope for early oncology diagnosis

Main article: Cancer diagnosis

2024: Microscope announcement for early oncology diagnosis

On March 29, 2024, Rostec announced that the Shvabe holding had created a high-resolution laser microscope for early diagnosis of oncology and analysis of the effectiveness of anticancer drugs. For March 2024, the development is used in scientific research - with its help, the "programmable" death of cancer cells under the influence of microgravity (weightlessness) is studied. A modified version of the microscope may take part in biomedical research as part of space programs.

source = Rostec

According to the company, the MIM-N laser microscope differs from foreign products in resolution - up to 0.1 nanometers vertically and up to 100 nanometers in the plane of the object. the Swiss For devices, these indicators are 1.5 times lower. In addition, such characteristics for March 2024 exceed the classical resolution limit for light microscopes, which is 0.25 micrometers.

Among other equipment features: a built-in camera to maintain the viability of the material being studied. At the same time, the device itself has a compact size and weight not exceeding 70 kilograms, which allows you to place the product in small rooms.

The laser microscope developed by the Schwabe holding specialists differentiates healthy and tumor cells due to its characteristics. It helps track changes in the treatment of cancer, select the dosage of the drug and analyze the effectiveness of its action. As of March 2024, the question of conducting biomedical research in space using a modified version of the microscope is under development. Observing the behavior of cells in space will confirm or refute the version of the death of cancer cells in the conditions of so-called microgravity. said Oleg Yevtushenko, Executive Director of Rostec State Corporation

The project was implemented by the Ural Optical and Mechanical Plant named after E. S. Yalamov holding "Shvabe" together with the Perm Federal Research Center of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

The MIM-N microscope is a completely domestic product. All designs and technologies, including software, have been developed and created in our country. As of March 2024, we have already released two products. One of them is used at our enterprise to work out technical solutions, the second is installed at the Perm Federal Research Center of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Using a microscope, specialists study the effect of various conditions on tumor cells. In particular, work is underway to study the behavior of cells in microgravity conditions - morphological and dynamic changes occurring in weightlessness are being studied. This is a study that allows you to understand the mechanism of programmed cell death and the change in cell phenotypes depending on the length of stay in weightlessness. told Vadim Kalyugin, General Director of Shvabe, member of the Bureau of the Union of Machine Builders of Russia

Research and applied work on laser microscopy of lifetime dynamics and cell morphology has been conducted by our Perm Federal Research Center of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences for more than 10 years. For March 2024, thanks to joint work with the Schwabe holding company, we got the opportunity to study in detail how cells behave in the context of oncological transformations and microgravity. supplemented by Oleg Naimark, project manager, professor, doctor of physical and mathematical sciences, head of the laboratory of the Institute of Continuous Media Mechanics of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences (branch of the Perm Federal Research Center of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences)