Super-Resolution Microscopy in Infection and Immunity

Oeiras, 08.09.2015

A group of scientists from IGC, ITQB and the University College London, working in immunity, infection, hardware/software development and facility management is organizing a symposium on Super-Resolution Microscopy in Infection and Immunity. The symposium takes place at the IGC and includes a short workshop on super-resolution microscopy at ITQB’s Bioimaging Facility.        

Registrations are now open.

Microscopy has been a major driving force in Cell Biology. Its inception in the 16th century led to the first ‘wave of discovery’ - the finding and comprehension of cells and their internal structure. However, the intrinsic limitations of light microscopes prevent the accurate resolution of structures smaller than 300 nm. It took 3 centuries to achieve a second ‘wave of discovery’ - the development of Electron Microscopes (EM) able to overcome this limit, offering a new view into the realm of small biological complexes, such as Viruses. We are now at the forefront of a third ‘wave of discovery’ brought about by the recent development of Super-Resolution light microscopy – a range of methods that approach the resolution of EM with the added capability of live cell imaging and molecule-specific labelling. Super-Resolution microscopy promises exciting new insights into how pathogens penetrate into host cells and what mechanisms contribute towards their survival and escape from immune detection.

The symposium aims to create a key environment to nucleate the engagement of scientists in immunology, infectious agents and host-pathogen interactions to foster innovation and the combination of different methods to record molecular interactions in their real spatio-temporal confinements.