FocalPlane - Where biology meets microscopy

Welcome to FocalPlane

FocalPlane is a community site for anyone who uses microscopy in their research. It is a place where you can interact with a global community of imaging scientists, engineers, chemists, and bioimage analysts.

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Recent posts

volume EM visualisation of synthetic scaffolds in bacteria

Posted by Janithri Wickramanayake, on 27 June 2025

by Matthew J Lee1, Judith Mantell2, Martin Warren1, Paul Verkade2, et al. 1University of Kent, 2University of Bristol Challenge Synthetic or Engineering Biology takes inspiration from nature to produce newly designed structures with the aim to improve its function, e.g. to produce “cell factories” with enhanced biological capabilities.We set out to produce a completely novel

Microscopy preprints – applications in biology

Posted by FocalPlane, on 27 June 2025

Here is a curated selection of preprints published recently. In this post, we share preprints that use microscopy tools to answer questions in biology.

Illuminating the Brain: Microscopy Techniques in Neuroscience and My Applications in the Lab

Posted by Sally Horton, on 23 June 2025

Understanding the brain’s complexity requires more than theory or behaviour; it demands a look at the smallest units of structure and function. Microscopy has long been a cornerstone of neuroscience, evolving rapidly from conventional optical methods to cutting-edge super-resolution and electron techniques. This article explores how confocal microscopy, STORM, and electron microscopy are advancing our

Featured image with Seth Agyei Domfeh

Posted by FocalPlane, on 20 June 2025

Our featured image, acquired by Seth Agyei Domfeh, shows the nuclear localisation of interferon regulatory factor 9 (IRF9) in human hepatoma (HepG2) cells stimulated with interferon α (IFN-α). HepG2 cells were cultured on a poly-D-lysine-coated coverslip for 24 hours and stimulated with 1000 IU/ml IFN-α. At 24 hours post-stimulation, the cells were fixed using 4%

New insights into corneal development from vEM

Posted by Mario Elias Ortega Sandoval, on 17 June 2025

by Rob Young*, Kiranjit Bains*, Phil Lewis* and Andrew Quantock* *Biophysics Research Group, School of Optometry & Vision Sciences, Cardiff University, UK Challenge The unique transparency of corneal stromal tissue, essential for vision, is dependent upon the remarkable order of component collagen fibrils, which exhibit highly uniform diameter, spacing and orientation. However, processes involved in

An interview with Andrew Porter, Research Integrity and Training Advisor

Posted by Helen Zenner, on 16 June 2025

Andrew Porter is the Research Integrity and Training Advisor at the Cancer Research UK Manchester Institute within the University of Manchester. Andrew worked for many years as a cell biology research scientist before moving into his role in research integrity. I caught up with Andrew over Zoom to learn more about his career path, what

Microscopy preprints – new tools and techniques in imaging

Posted by FocalPlane, on 13 June 2025

Here is a curated selection of preprints posted recently on new tools and techniques in imaging. Let us know if we are missing any recent preprints that are on your reading list! IntAct-U-ExM: Ultrastructure Expansion microscopy of actin networks via an internally-tagged actinAnubhav Dhar, Nishaant Kumar Palani Balaji, Sanjana Mullick, Sucheta Dey, Angana Ghosh, Deepak

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