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This notice is issued to help determine the availability of qualified companies technically capable of meeting the Government requirement and to determine the method of acquisition. It is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government to issue a solicitation or ultimately award a contract. Responses will not be considered as proposals or quotes. No award will be made as a result of this notice. The Government will NOT be responsible for any costs incurred by the respondents to this notice. This notice is strictly for information purposes only.
Background: The CBBU combines biophysical and cell biological approaches to understand the interplay between microtubules and their regulators as well as how the tubulin post-translational modifications tune the behavior of motors and microtubule associated proteins; performing measurements of microtubules and microtubule associated proteins and their kinetics and dynamics at the single molecule level. The mission of the Cell Biology and Biophysics Unit at NINDS is to determine the structure and mechanism of proteins that regulate the cytoskeleton with involvement in neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative disorders. The collection of cryo-EM data using this high-resolution cryo-EM system is the only way to obtain structural information on essential microtubule regulator, a microtubule severing enzyme. The structure that will be obtained because of this data collection will be used to understand the role of microtubule severing in health and disease.
Purpose and Objectives: The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), Cell Biology and Biophysics Unit (CBBU) performs structural characterization of tubulin and microtubule modifying enzymes and regulators along or in complex with microtubules. The experiments require an extremely sensitive Cryo-Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM) than can fit within a small footprint. This system will allow us to perform single particle cryo-EM and tomography analyses with the ultimate goal of obtaining high and medium resolution reconstructions of these protein complexes.
Salient characteristics
• 200 kV FEG Cryo Transmission and Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope (S/TEM).
• Optimized for high-resolution 3D imaging of proteins and macromolecular assemblies.
• Operates between 80-200 kV.
• Constant Power Contrast - objective lens that must optimize resolution and contrast for biological imaging. Constant power to the objective lens is needed because in traditional EM microscopes to increase the strength of the lens, e.g. to increase magnification, requires increase of power within the microscope column which increases heat. Technology with constant power to the objective lens affords thermal stability over a range of conditions by always dissipating the same power regardless of lens excitation.
• The Autogrid Cassette must be compatible with the 300kV Titan Krios that is already installed at NIH in Bethesda, MD.
• Electron column and autoloader must be equipped with an Auto-Fill system for liquid nitrogen ensuring a constant workflow and high sample throughput. The Auto-Fill system refills liquid nitrogen in the microscope automatically instead of the traditional every 4-hour manual refill by a user. This way the microscope can collect data during non-working hours. Also, a self-cleaning cryo cycle mechanism can be activated during non-working hours to ensure that the vacuum is always in optimal condition.
• Performance in cryo-condition:
• During cryo-EM use, the loss of electron transmission through a specimen due to ice growth should be < 5% in 24 hours, which is approximately equivalent to 0.2 nm per hour.
• The system must have an extremely stable specimen stage under cryo-conditions: 30 minutes after specimen exchange, the specimen drift rate must be less than 0.25 nm/s, and 60 minutes after specimen exchange it must be less than 0.05 nm/s
• The lifetime of a frozen-hydrated specimen must be at least 24 hours or longer in the microscope column without detectable deterioration in ice quality.
• The microscope must be equipped with automated screening software, capable of automatically screening all 12 specimen grids and providing grid atlas overviews with classification in terms of ice properties.
• The microscope must be provided with software that assist the daily tuning of the system including the automatic alignments of: Gun Alignment, Eucentric Height, Beam Shift, C2 aperture Centering, Beam tilt pivot point alignment and Rotation Center
• The software controlling all detectors/cameras must be fully embedded into the TEM's operation system.
• Safety control is implemented in software and hardware, protecting the operator, instrument, detectors and specimens.
• Microscope must fit into a room approximately: 14.5' x 16' x 9.5'Height. The equipment will occupy 13' x 4.4' x 6.6'Height. The microscope must fit through several doors 7' high.
• Contractor shall have, as a part of the system, a workflow assistant application that contains videos on how to set up microscope for data collection, including loading grids, screening grids, microscope alignment. The App is user friendly and does not require any additional training session to use it.
Quantity: 1 System
Training:
The contractor shall provide:
• Workflow validation using a biological sample. This will be one-time data collection on a biological sample and processing of these collected data. To insure high performance of the newly installed microscope it is expected that the data collected would result in a better than 4 Å structure of apoferritin, a commonly used molecule for this particular procedure.
• Ten (10) days of on-site application training. To independently set up microscope for data collection, including loading grids, screening grids, microscope alignment, data collection.
• Training shall include use of the workflow assistant application identified as part of the salient characteristics of this equipment.
Support.
• Fifty (50) hours of remote support, e.g. 24-hour phone and email support. Hardware/software support is needed to prevent downtime and resolve issues quickly. The issues can arise from any software errors or hardware breaks.
• Regular monitoring of system health, which is a daily remote monitoring of the overall microscope performance and health status and remote repair by service engineers if needed.
• Workflow Assistant App. a workflow assistant application that contains videos on how to set up microscope for data collection, including loading grids, screening grids, microscope alignment. The App is user friendly and does not require any additional training session to use it.
Delivery: The contractor shall deliver within six (6) months after receipt of the order. Delivery shall be FOB destination and include inside delivery. Delivery to NIH Bethesda, Maryland Campus in coordination with the NIH Program Official.
Warranty: Contractor shall warrant that the Equipment will be free from material defects for a period of twelve (12) months from the date of acceptance or fourteen (14) months from the date of Delivery if installation is delayed through no fault of Company, whichever occurs first.
Capability statement /information sought:
Respondents must provide clear and convincing documentation of their capability of providing the equipment specified in this notice.
The respondent must also provide their DUNS number, organization name, address, point of contact, and size and type of business (e.g., 8(a), HubZone, etc., pursuant to the applicable NAICS code and any other information that may be helpful in developing or finalizing the acquisition requirements.
Respondents should provide responses accordingly: (1) submit information electronically by email. No mail, telephone or facsimile responses will be accepted; (2) format capability statements using Microsoft Word or Adobe PDF including attachments, resumes, charts, etc. Use single space, 12 font minimum and 8.5 x 11 size paper; (3) organize material in such a manner that clearly identifies and addresses capability requirements and provide an executive summary; (4) capability statement should not exceed two pages not including the cover page, executive summary, or references; (5)
RESPONSES SHOULD BE RECEIVED NO LATER THAN 10:00 AM EASTERN TIME ON May 8, 2019; (6) include respondents' technical and administrative points of contact, including names, titles, addresses, telephone and fax numbers, and email addresses; and (7) send responses to this notice via email to [email protected]
"Disclaimer and Important Notes: This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in response. The Government reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate. Any organization responding to this notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed to allow the Government to determine the organization's qualifications to perform the work.
Respondents are advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted. After a review of the responses received, a pre-solicitation synopsis and solicitation may be published in Federal Business Opportunities. However, responses to this notice will not be considered adequate responses to a solicitation.
Confidentiality: No proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information should be included in your response. The Government reserves the right to use any non-proprietary technical information in any resultant solicitation(s)."