Projects
Development of Correlative atmospheric scanning electron and fluorescence super-resolution microscopy to investigate the regulation of EGF signaling KU Leuven
In this project, a unique CLEM modality is explored. Atmosphere scanning electron microscopy (ASEM), a novel electron microscopic technique, in which a sample is observed under atmorspheric conditions, will be combined with PALM or dSTORM.
FRET-type remote excitation tip-enhanced fluorescence microscopy for super-resolution DNA mapping KU Leuven
DNA, deoxyribonucleic acid, is a nucleic acid with a double helical strand containing the genetic instructions for the development and function of all living organisms. Since 1953, when Watson and Crick first reported the molecular structure of DNA, extensive research has been put into decoding genetic information and understanding how it works. The most commonly used method is by DNA sequencing in which the DNA is first cut into small pieces ...
The glycine receptor: subunit stoichiometry and (sub) membrane interactions explored by new two-color fluorescence microscopy with single molecule sensitivity and with superresolution. Hasselt University
Chip-based Super-Resolution Structured Illumination Microscopy KU Leuven
Super-resolution fluorescent microscopy is a powerful tool in biology and medical research nowadays. Indeed, three pioneers of the super-resolution methods have been awarded with the Nobel Prize in 2014. However, all these methods are implemented with bulky freespace precision optical instruments. They have the common drawbacks of high cost, cumbersome size, small field of view (FOV) and slow operation speed. On the other hand, extremely ...
Polymer dynamics studied by super-resolution microscopy KU Leuven
Living tissues are more than packed cells. In fact, much of a tissue's volume is made up of extracellular space, filled with a complex meshwork of sugars, water, minerals and proteins called the extracellular matrix (ECM). Besides providing a structure support to the cells, the ECM plays a crucial role in several cellular processes, such as cell survival, development, adhesion and migration. Biological scaffold materials derived from the ECM ...
Super-resolution biosensing enabled by adapted chemigenetic probes KU Leuven
Fluorescence microscopy is a major imaging technique for many biology-related fields. Super-resolution microscopy has vastly enhanced its abilities by providing nanometer-scale imaging, though super-resolution biosensing has remained largely out of reach. As a result, the direct observation of biochemical processes at the nanoscale remains difficult, largely because genetically-encoded fluorophores have limited optical properties compared to ...
The study of HIV-1 uncoating by super-resolution imaging of fluorescently labeled capsid. KU Leuven
Single-virus fluorescence experiments provide a powerful tool to study the HIV-1 replication cycle, which is characterised by fast and transient events, essential virus-host interactions and an overall heterogeneous nature. Specific labelling of a viral protein of interest without inhibiting viral infectivity allows to monitor individual steps of the replication cycle in space and time. In this thesis, we aimed to investigate the fate of both ...
Integrated super-resolution optical and scanning electron microscope: a powerful and unique tool for materials research. KU Leuven
Recently, nanotechnology has taken an important place in materials science. Not only have traditional materials been miniaturized, nanostructured materials also possess remarkable and unique properties compared to their larger counterparts. As such it has become very important to characterize nanostructured materials at relevant length scales and under realistic conditions. By developing a unique new integrated microscopy platform based on ...
3D dynamic super-resolution imaging of bacterial lysis KU Leuven
Fluorescence microscopy allows researchers to observe dynamic processes in live-cells. Unfortunately, the size of bacterial cells (~2μm) is close to the resolving power of an optical microscope, known as the diffraction-limit. Therefore, while the general shape of bacteria can be seen, their sub-cellular details cannot be resolved. Particularly, observing the effects of antibiotic treatment on live bacteria is strongly obscured by the ...