Mariana De Niz, Author at FocalPlane

Mariana De Niz

My name is Mariana De Niz and I’ve dedicated most of my research career to the study of infectious diseases and host-pathogen interactions. Microscopy has been a pivotal tool for my work, and it’s something I enjoy enormously. It’s a discipline that evolves so quickly: there’s so much to learn every day, both in microscopy itself, and in image analysis - and all the possibilities that together, they bring. I was lucky to do my PhD in a lab which was at the forefront of microscopy, and have continued to develop my skills in this area ever since. As a science communicator, I have focused most of my energies to the field of microscopy too, both during my participation in preLights, and FocalPlane. In the latter, together with the enormous support of the Latin American microscopy community, we have been highlighting the work of scientists from each country in the region, in a project that will have its first completion in 2025. I applied to become a FocalPlane correspondent because I admire the mission of FocalPlane in terms of democratising microscopy through its various initiatives (outreach, science communication, blogs, etc). My goal is to contribute 12 pieces during this year, among them covering topics such as a) frugal microscopy and its impact in society, b) the impact of various microscopy-targeted funding schemes in developing countries - specifically in Latin America and Africa, c) the impact of organisations bringing together microscopy communities around the world, d) specific initiatives that aim to bring the vanguard microscopy techniques to everyone, e) image analysis: the future, f) the role of imaging in the context of infectious diseases - a historical and public health perspective.

About Mariana De Niz

Scientific field: Cell biology, Parasitology, Immunology, Mechanobiology, Microbiology

Microscopy background: Optical System Development, Probe Development, Image Analysis

Posts by Mariana De Niz

An interview with Carlos Bustamante

Posted by Mariana De Niz, on 11 July 2023

MiniBio: Carlos Bustamante is a HHMI investigator and full professor at University of California at Berkeley, where he leads a lab focusing on single molecule force spectroscopy. From an early age, Carlos was attracted to science, and at age 15, with the help of his family, set up his own lab in his parent’s house.

An interview with Marco Andrés Romero Carvajal

Posted by Mariana De Niz, on 4 July 2023

MiniBio: Dr. Andrés Romero-Carvajal is a group leader and principal investigator at Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador, where his lab focuses on Developmental Biology and Regeneration using different models like poison frogs, zebrafish and planaria. He studied his undergraduate degree at the same University, under the supervision of Prof. Emeritus Eugenia del Pino, from whom

An interview with Dario Fernando Cueva Granda

Posted by Mariana De Niz, on 27 June 2023

MiniBio: Dario Cueva is a MSc student at Universidad de San Francisco de Quito, working on biofilms in the lab of Prof. Antonio Machado (also interviewed in this series). Dario studied Biotechnology at the same university. He has used light and electron microscopy to study biofilms and bacteriophages. In this interview he tells us about

An interview with Jose Antonio Baptista Machado

Posted by Mariana De Niz, on 20 June 2023

MiniBio: Dr. Jose Antonio Baptista Machado is a principal investigator and lecturer at Universidad de San Francisco de Quito in Ecuador, where him and his group focus on the study of biofilms. Antonio studied his undergraduate studies in Evora, Portugal, and his graduate studies in Minho, Portugal. After finishing his PhD in 2014, he was

An interview with Veronica Eisner

Posted by Mariana De Niz, on 13 June 2023

MiniBio: Dr. Veronica Eisner is a professor at Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, where she leads a lab since 2015, focusing on mitochondrial dynamics and their link to physio pathological processes. In parallel, she is the Academic Director of the Advanced Microscopy Unit at the same University, and has been in multiple leadership roles of