BSCB/BSDB meeting report

by Victoria Hart

The lab took a trip to the BSCB/BSDB conference earlier this week. It was wonderful to get back to in-person scientific discussions and a wide-range of fascinating talks focused on developmental and cellular biology. 

A highlight of the conference was considering the possibilities presented by the new technological advancements on show. Multiple groups discussed working on 3D culturing organoid modelling with increasing complex systems allowing multiple-cell interactions to be studied. 

As a cell biology conference microscopy techniques were of course in focus. A new system to measure atomic force in vivo was presented by Dr Maniou. The combination of forster resonance energy transfer (FRET) with bright sheet microscopy allowed for the dissection of signalling and cell:cell interactions in the context of a whole cell, as discussed by Prof. Marco Fitzsche. Expansion microscopy was used by Dr Hamel to capture high-resolution images of very small proteins by embedding them in absorbent gels which expand and allow for the use of bright field microscopy. 

These new technologies are offering exciting ways to address scientific questions. However, whilst these are exciting in themselves the focus should be on utilising this technology as tools to answer hypothesis-driven research questions. We can’t wait for the next opportunity to gather with our fellow scientists.