Development of imaging technologies
Impact
Modern biology and medicine are undergoing fundamental changes. Novel state-of-the-art imaging technologies are driving this change, offering researchers the unprecedented ability to visualize and quantify molecular and cellular functions, as well as metabolic processes, with an unparalleled level of precision.
Basic & Translational Research
The development of imaging tools is a multidisciplinary endeavor, bringing together researchers from various disciplines such as Biophysics, Biomedical Engineering, and Bioinformatics. The advancements in imaging tools have far-reaching applications, enabling researchers to gain profound insights into fundamental biological questions and facilitating the diagnosis of human diseases with greater ease and accuracy.
Cooperation with industry
Many members of Austrian BioImaging/CMI, affiliated with Austrian research institutes and universities, conduct research on the development of new imaging technologies and have established long-term collaborations with industry and startups in this sector.
Some of our showcases.
Imaging Technologies for the Healthcare of Tomorrow
The Center for Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering at Medical University of Vienna
Expertise:
The research group of Wolfgang Drexler develops cutting edge optical technologies by combining strengths of different imaging modalities such as Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT), Photoacoustics, Fluorescence Microscopy, Raman Spectroscopy, and Non-linear Optical Microscopy. This is supported for example by advanced laser development, endoscope and laparoscope designs as well as photonics integrated circuits. A key goal is the translation of the technologies to the clinics and to preclinical research by addressing imaging across the scales from the subcellular to the organ level.
Research topics:
– OCT Technologies
– Translational OCT
– Photoacustics
– Advanced Microscopy and Spectroscopy
– Multimodal Biomedical Imaging
Development of single molecule microscopy
Biophysics at TU Wien
Expertise:
The research group of Biophysics Research Unit uses single molecule microscopy techniques to gain insights into general aspects of membrane biophysics, neuroscience and immunology. By monitoring the localization and the dynamics of biomolecules we aim to understand their function in model systems as well as in living cells. The main tools used in our lab are single molecule total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF) microscopy, Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) as well as single molecule localization microscopy (STORM, PALM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Advancing these techniques and associated analysis methods is another focus of the research group.
Research topics:
– Single molecule localization microscopy
– Early T-cell development
Probing mechanical properties in biology and bio-medicine
Brillouin Light Scattering (BSL) Microspectroscopy
Expertise:
The research group of Kareem Elsayad works on developing novel optical microscopy and spectroscopy techniques to elucidate microscopic scale mechanical, structural, and dynamic properties of biological matter. These are used to provide insight into their anatomical relevance (defining morphology, and organization across different scales), functional relevance (role in development, locomotion, and signaling/information transduction), and medical relevance (relation to pathologies and potential for prognostics and diagnostics). They work on human donor samples as well as diverse model organisms, and collaborate with clinics to explore the translational potential of the developed techniques.
Research topics:
– Elucidating the connection between microscopic scale viscoelastic anisotropy and microscopic anatomy, the biophysical implications thereof, and biomedical relevance in relation to pathologies.
– Development of a “Brillouin Scattering Atlas of the Human Body”
– Building on our understanding of the viscoelastic and rheological properties of biofluids under physiological and pathological conditions, developing optical approaches for high-throughput measurements thereof, and exploring their diagnostic potential.
– Shedding light on mechanical signaling and information transduction processes on the microscopic and mesoscopic scale in biological systems, and the biomedical relevance thereof.
– Miniaturization and optimization of existing and novel optical microspectroscopy approaches, and instigating their translation to clinical applications.
Image | 2D map of longitudinal elastic storage modulus of onion cell wall and nucleus