Courtesy of Leica

Leica Microsystems http://www.leica-microsystems.com, Bannockburn, Ill., has released the DM6000 B, the latest in its new DM line of digital research microscopes. The system includes a host of automated features: an automatic recall function for all settings, fully automated interference contrast, a five-step fluorescence intensity manager, and single-key switching between contrasting techniques, all designed to reduce the tedium of research microscopy, says product manager Jill Dreschler. "It's great for multiuser environments, it's great for beginning microscopists, it's great for people who want to work fast," she adds.

Ralph Marcucio, who heads a molecular and cellular biology lab at the University of California-San Francisco, recently acquired a Leica DM5000 B (an earlier model in the DM line) to replace an older, manual microscope. "I have a multiuser lab, with varying levels of expertise in microscopy," says Marcucio. "The automation made it easy to get consistent results across different...