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Getting Started in CAMI

Welcome to CAMI! The following steps are required to access CAMI facilities and instruments.

Wildcard Access

CAMI workstations can be accessed during business hours without Wildcard access. For after-hours workstation use or access to CAMI's inner hallway, you will need to request Wildcard access.

  1. Have a valid Wildcard.
  2. Complete the CAMI Access form (under "Silverman Hall Wildcard Access")
    1. Fill out the form and acknowledge the hazard warning, then have the form signed by your PI.
    2. Send the signed form to cami@northwestern.edu to be approved by CAMI staff.
    3. Send the approved form to clp-info@northwestern.edu with photos of the front and back of your WildCard.
  3. Your access should be enabled in approximately 2 business days.

Training

Some instruments in CAMI have training prerequisites before your access can be approved. You can obtain the required certifications in MyHR Learn. Some you may have already completed as part of your lab safety training; others are CAMI-specific.

IVIS Spectrum

  1. Working with Anesthetic Gases Certification
  2. Personal Protective Equipment Certification
  3. IVIS Introduction Course

Cell Culture Room

  1. CAMI Cell Culture Room Orientation Certification


Instrument Reservations

Instruments in CAMI are reserved through NUCore, the scheduling and billing software that is used across cores at Northwestern.

If CAMI staff will be reserving and using an instrument on your behalf, you will need to:

  1. Ensure that you have an active NUCore account.
  2. Ensure that you have an active and available chartstring. If you need to add a chartstring, please coordinate this with your departmental business administrator.

If you will be reserving and using an instrument yourself, you will ALSO need to:

  1. Ensure that you have completed any training prerequisites as described above.
  2. Request access to your desired instrument through NUCore.
  3. Complete in-person orientation.

Protocols

 To perform in vivo work in CAMI, you MUST have an IACUC protocol that covers the planned experiments. Please contact CAMI staff at cami@northwestern.edu if you have questions or need assistance with protocol amendments.

CAMI provides several Approved Animal Procedures (AAPs) to streamline the necessary protocol amendments:

  • IVIS (In Vivo Imaging System) at the Center for Advanced Molecular Imaging
  • Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) at the Center for Advanced Molecular Imaging
  • Nuclear Imaging (PET/SPECT/CT) at the Center for Advanced Molecular Imaging
  • X-ray Computed Tomography (CT-only) at the Center for Advanced Molecular Imaging
These AAPs describe the procedures for each type of imaging, and contain instructions for adding housing / staff / etc. to your protocol.