Microscope News and Research

RSS

Laser phase plate dramatically expands cryo-EM imaging capabilities

In a landmark achievement in biological imaging, researchers at the University of California, Berkeley and Biohub today announced the successful demonstration of the laser phase plate, a novel device that dramatically improves the contrast of images produced by cryo-electron microscopes, opening up an entirely new view of human biology.

11 Jun 2026

Collagen exists as liquid droplets inside living cells, study reveals

Collagen, the protein that builds skin, bones, tendons and organs, exists inside cells as a liquid-like droplet rather than the long, rigid rod seen in textbooks over the last half century, according to a new study from the Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG) in Barcelona.

11 Jun 2026

Low-methionine diet shows promise against aggressive brain tumors

An unexpected lab observation led a team of scientists to discover how diet can influence survival in animal models of glioma, one of the most aggressive and deadly forms of brain cancer.

10 Jun 2026

New hybrid lens design drastically cuts 3D microscopy costs and complexity

A team led by Raju Tomer, professor of biological sciences at Columbia University, has created a new design for microscopes and microscope lenses that could push 3D tissue imaging beyond state-of-the-art systems while drastically cutting costs and complexity.

10 Jun 2026

NHS pathology staff face unsafe formaldehyde exposure levels

Routine exposure to harmful levels of the human tissue preservative formaldehyde are risking the health of thousands of NHS staff working in pathology departments across the UK, due to poor monitoring and control, finds an analysis of Freedom of Information (FOI) requests, published online in the journal Occupational & Environmental Medicine.

9 Jun 2026

Scientists uncover unexpected thermal retention properties inside the cell

Living cells cool much slower than our current understanding of heat conduction can explain, according to new research from the University of Tokyo. Researchers used two techniques - high-speed temperature mapping and artificial heating - to observe how heat dissipated from living cells and similar-sized artificial, fluid-filled sacs (liposomes).

28 May 2026

Major trial compares surgical approaches for treating Chiari malformation and syringomyelia

A nationwide study has shed new light on how to most effectively and safely treat Chiari malformation and syringomyelia, rare neurological diseases that impact both children and young adults.

27 May 2026

Study reveals how cells regulate spindle formation during division

During animal cell division, a highly synchronized and tightly regulated dance of chromosomes takes place, ensuring the chromosomes split correctly into the two cells.

27 May 2026

Artificial intelligence reveals hidden fluid flow patterns in sleeping brains

When a person goes into deep sleep, waterlike fluid circulates around the brain, washing away metabolic waste that is linked to diseases such as Alzheimer's.

27 May 2026

Surface acids found crucial for bacterial shape and growth

Researchers have discovered how acids on the surface of bacteria give these microscopic organisms their characteristic "rod" shape-by keeping an enzyme at bay that would otherwise turn the cylindrical cells into shape-shifting blobs.

26 May 2026

Smaller tetraploid cells drive more aggressive cancer

Megan Sweet slices tumors. A normal day in the lab finds the Virginia Tech graduate student with hands deep inside a refrigerated metal box, pulling a mounted mouse-grown tumor incrementally closer to a razor-sharp blade.

25 May 2026

ISTA researchers prove keratin is indispensable for coherent cell migration

Hair, nails, and horns, all made up of keratin, are some of the hardest and most resilient structures in animals. Inside zebrafish cells, keratin plays a distinct role, giving them the strength they need to move together as a coherent tissue while modulating the driving forces behind their movement during early development. But what happens when keratin is missing?

22 May 2026

Specific gene fusion patterns tied to solitary fibrous tumor outcomes

Specific genetic fusion patterns in solitary fibrous tumors may help identify which patients face a higher risk of metastasis, recurrence and more aggressive disease behavior, according to new research that could improve how physicians assess and eventually treat this rare cancer.

21 May 2026

Scientists link schizophrenia risk gene to early cortical neuron changes

Researchers at King's College London have identified the biological nature and timing of changes in human cortical neurons caused by altering activity of a schizophrenia-associated gene in developing human neurons.

20 May 2026

New AI framework maps systemic obesity damage at cellular resolution

Researchers at Helmholtz Munich, the Ludwig Maximilians University Munich (LMU) and collaborating institutions have developed an artificial intelligence (AI) framework that maps disease-related changes throughout the entire mouse body at cellular resolution.

20 May 2026

Neuroplex pipeline monitors nine neuronal populations in moving mice

Scientists at the Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience (MPFI), in collaboration with ZEISS and MetaCell, have developed a powerful new imaging pipeline called Neuroplex.

20 May 2026

Fluid viscosity drives mechanical memory and invasion in glioblastoma

Most cancer studies focus on chemical signals or stiff tumor surroundings, but the stickiness of the fluid itself has received little attention.

20 May 2026

Brain immune cells found to regulate anxiety and grooming behaviors

A study led by a University of Louisville School of Medicine pediatrics and child neurology researcher reveals how a specific signaling mechanism in microglia, the brain's immune cell, can regulate anxiety and grooming behaviors. These behaviors are core symptoms of autism and obsessive-compulsive spectrum disorders.

14 May 2026

Medical imaging could improve precision diagnosis of aggressive head and neck tumors

Medical imaging routinely used in cancer care may hold far more biological information than previously thought.

13 May 2026

Worms help researchers tackle rare childhood genetic disease

A new worm model developed by Brown University researchers could play a key role in treating a rare genetic disease that causes paralysis in children and worsens with age.

13 May 2026