[SCAN] AI-driven Optical Biology

Title: AI-driven Optical Biology

Speaker: Ricardo Henriques

From: AI-driven Optical Biology Lab, ITQB NOVA

Abstract: At the intersection of virology, cell biology, and advanced microscopy, our research has pioneered innovative approaches to visualise cellular and viral processes at unprecedented resolution. By developing cutting-edge computational tools integrated with optical microscopy, we've created platforms that reveal the intricate dynamics of host-pathogen interactions. Our team and collaborators have established an open-source ecosystem that particularly excels at capturing live-cell dynamics during viral infection and host immune responses. The cornerstone of our technological developments includes the NanoJ library and its Python-based successor Nanopyx, which have enabled researchers to observe viral entry, assembly, and cellular trafficking with exceptional clarity. Our latest advancement, the "enhanced Super-Resolution Radial Fluctuations" (eSRRF), adapts intelligently to sample characteristics, allowing us to track viral particles and their interactions with cellular machinery in real-time. To democratise advanced imaging analysis, we've developed ZeroCostDL4Mic and DL4MicEverywhere, platforms that harness Deep Learning for biological microscopy. These tools have proven invaluable for studying viral infection mechanisms, enabling automated detection of viral particles, segmentation of infected cells, and analysis of host-cell responses. Our open technologies have been successfully applied to investigate diverse biological systems, from viral trafficking in eukaryotic cells to bacterial infections, providing crucial insights into pathogen-host dynamics through single-molecule precision microscopy.

SCANs are weekly seminars that happen every Wednesday at noon by in-house researchers and invited speakers at ITQB NOVA.