Scallop Eyes as Inspiration for New Microscope Objectives

New lens can be produced much more cheaply and offers equivalent or even better image quality than conventional lenses

04-Apr-2023 - Neuroscientists at the University of Zurich have developed innovative objectives for light microscopy by using mirrors to produce images. Their design finds correspondence in mirror telescopes used in astronomy on the one hand and the eyes of scallops on the other. The new objectives enable ...

New Insights into Kidney Disease with Tropical Frog Models

AI analyzes data from light-sheet microscopy

09-Nov-2021 - Using cutting-edge genetic engineering, UZH researchers have developed a model to study hereditary kidney disease with the help of tropical frogs. The method allows them to collect large amounts of data on anomalies, which can then be analyzed using artificial intelligence. The research opens up ...

Microscopy Deep Learning Predicts Viral Infections

Automatic detection of virus-infected cells - solely on the fluorescence of the cell nucleus

23-Jun-2021 - When viruses infect cells, changes in the cell nucleus occur, and these can be observed through fluorescence microscopy. Using fluoresence images from live cells, researchers at the University of Zurich have trained an artificial neural network to reliably recognize cells that are infected by ...

Measuring the Effects of Drugs on Cancer Cells

13-Jul-2018 - A new approach established at the University of Zurich sheds light on the effects of anti-cancer drugs and the defense mechanisms of cancer cells. The method makes it possible to quickly test various drugs and treatment combinations at the cellular level. Cancer cells are cells over which the ...

Stem cell divisions in the adult brain seen for the first time

12-Feb-2018 - Scientists from the University of Zurich have succeeded for the first time in tracking individual stem cells and their neuronal progeny over months within the intact adult brain. This study sheds light on how new neurons are produced throughout life. The generation of new nerve cells was once ...

Identifying the right target

Protein structure could unlock new treatments for cystic fibrosis

15-Dec-2017 - Biochemists at the University of Zurich have used cryo-electron microscopy to determine the detailed architecture of the chloride channel TMEM16A. This protein is a promising target for the development of effective drugs to treat cystic fibrosis. Cystic fibrosis is a severe hereditary disease of ...

Molecular structure of the cell nucleoskeleton revealed for the first time

03-Mar-2017 - Using 3D electron microscopy, structural biologists from the University of Zurich succeeded in elucidating the architecture of the lamina of the cell nucleus at molecular resolution for the first time. This scaffold stabilizes the cell nucleus in higher eukaryotes and is involved in organizing, ...

Milestone single-biomolecule imaging technique may advance drug design

01-Oct-2015 - Knowing the detailed shape of biomolecules such as proteins is essential for biological studies and drug discovery. Modern structural biology relies on techniques such as nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), X-ray crystallography and cryo-electron microscopy to discover the tiny structural details ...

High-performance microscope displays pores in the cell nucleus with greater precision

30-Jun-2015 - The transportation of certain molecules into and out of the cell nucleus takes place via nuclear pores. For some time, detailed research has been conducted into how these pores embedded in the nuclear envelope are structured. Now, for the first time, biochemists from the University of Zurich have ...

Empa researchers clarify reaction pathway to fabricate graphene-like materials

11-Nov-2010 - Graphene is a promising material for tomorrow’s nanoelectronics devices. Precise and upscaleable methods to fabricate graphene and derived materials with desired electronic properties are however still searched after. To overcome the current limitations, Empa researchers have fabricated ...