PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Researchers' new method may sharpen microscopic images

UT Dallas researchers are developing a new low-light imaging method that could improve a number of scientific applications, including the microscopic imaging of molecules in cancer research

2013-03-21
(Press-News.org) UT Dallas researchers are developing a new low-light imaging method that could improve a number of scientific applications, including the microscopic imaging of single molecules in cancer research.

Electrical engineering professor Dr. Raimund Ober and his team recently published their findings in the journal Nature Methods. In the journal, they describe a method which minimizes the deterioration of images that can occur with conventional imaging approaches.

"Any image you take of an object is translated by the camera into pixels with added electronic noise," Ober said. "Any distortion of an image makes it harder to obtain accurate estimates of the quantities you're interested in."

This method could greatly enhance the accuracy with which quantities of interest, such as the location, size, and orientation of an object, are extracted from the acquired images.

Ober and his team tackled this problem by using the EMCCD camera (a standard low-light image detector) in a highly unconventional setting. Using this method, scientists can estimate quantities of interest from the image data with substantially higher accuracy than those made with conventional low-light imaging.

"We have figured out through rigorous theoretical developments that when you run an EMCCD camera in such a way that very few photons hit each of its pixels, the resulting image is minimally corrupted by the camera noise," he said. "Our method is about using the EMCCD camera to its fullest potential, beyond what is commonly believed to be possible by the scientific imaging community."

By increasing the magnification of the image to reduce the number of photons detected in each image pixel, they were able to significantly reduce the camera noise and considerably lessen the deteriorative effect of pixilation.

In fact, the team managed to attain particle localization accuracy that was twofold higher than those obtained with conventional EMCCD imaging.

Ober and his team applied UAIM (Ultrahigh Accuracy Imaging Modality) to the live-cell tracking of a standard protein marker for breast cancer. By being able to accurately follow the movement of the marker, valuable insights on the biology of breast cancer could be gained.

"The tracking of individual proteins represents an important way to study cancer and other diseases at the molecular level," Ober said. "The applications of UAIM for diagnostics and research are promising."

### The research team included Jerry Chao and Sripad Ram, post-doctoral researchers at UT Dallas, and Dr. Sally Ward, professor of immunology at UT Southwestern Medical Center.

The work was funded by the National Institutes of Health and the Cancer Prevention Research Institute of Texas.


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Do I know you? Memory patterns help us recall the social webs we weave, finds new Cornell study

2013-03-21
ITHACA, N.Y. — With a dizzying number of ties in our social networks – that your Aunt Alice is a neighbor of Muhammad who is married to Natasha who is your wife's boss – it's a wonder we remember any of it. How do we keep track of the complexity? We cheat, says a Cornell University sociologist in Scientific Reports (March 21), a publication of Nature. Study: http://www.nature.com/srep/2013/130321/srep01513/full/srep01513.html Humans keep track of social information not by rote memorization but with simplifying rules, as you might remember a number sequence that always ...

Genetic risk strategies needed for young, black, female breast cancer patients, Moffitt study shows

2013-03-21
Researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center and colleagues in Canada have published study results focused on black women younger than 50, a population disproportionately afflicted with and dying from early-onset breast cancer compared to their white counterparts. The research published in the Jan. 16 issue of The Breast Journal. Early-onset breast cancer has been associated with mutations in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes. These breast cancer predisposing genes were discovered almost 20 years ago and confer a lifetime risk of breast cancer of 60 to 70 percent, as well as a much higher ...

Berkeley Lab scientists read the cosmic writing on the wall

Berkeley Lab scientists read the cosmic writing on the wall
2013-03-21
Thanks to a supersensitive space telescope and some sophisticated supercomputing, scientists from the international Planck collaboration have made the closest reading yet of the most ancient story in our universe: the cosmic microwave background (CMB). Today, the team released preliminary results based on the Planck observatory's first 15 months of data. Using supercomputers at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC) Planck scientists have created the most detailed and accurate maps yet of the relic radiation ...

For the first time, recommendations offer guidance about incidental genetic findings

2013-03-21
Boston – In a highly anticipated report, landmark recommendations on the handling of incidental findings in clinical genome and exome sequencing are being issued from the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG). A report of the recommendations, led by Robert C. Green, MD, MPH, a medical geneticist at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH), outlines for the first time a minimum list of genetic conditions, genes and variants that laboratories performing clinical sequencing should seek and report to the physicians that ordered the testing -- regardless of the ...

European Guidance for the diagnosis & management of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women

2013-03-21
A new Guidance recently published by the European Society for Clinical and Economic Aspects of Osteoporosis (ESCEO) and the International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF) reflects the most current advances in the diagnosis and management of osteoporosis, the 'silent disease' which affects up to one in two postmenopausal women. "The serious impact of fragility fractures due to osteoporosis is vastly underestimated by many health care professionals," stated ESCEO President Professor Jean-Yves Reginster. "Statistics clearly show that fragility fractures in older adults ...

Differences in bone healing in old mice may hold answers to better bone healing for seniors

2013-03-21
Philadelphia – By studying the underlying differences in gene expression during healing after a bone break in young versus aged mice, Jaimo Ahn, MD, PhD, assistant professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at the Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, and his colleagues aim to find specific pathways of fracture healing in humans. The team of researchers will present their findings in a poster presentation beginning Tuesday, March 19, 2013 at the 2013 American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons annual meeting in Chicago. Problems with healing after bone fractures ...

Microalgae could be a profitable source of biodiesel

2013-03-21
Researchers at the UAB's Institute of Environmental Science and Technology (ICTA-UAB) and the Institute of Marine Sciences (ICM-CSIC), have analysed the potential of different species of microalgae for producing biodiesel, comparing their growth, production of biomass and the quantity of lipids per cell (essential for obtaining fuel). Their study shows that one type of marine algae that has received little attention till now - dinoflagellate microalgae - is highly suitable for cultivation with the aim of producing biodiesel. The scientists carried out the whole production ...

Findings to help in design of drugs against virus causing childhood illnesses

2013-03-21
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - New research findings may help scientists design drugs to treat a virus infection that causes potentially fatal brain swelling and paralysis in children. The virus, called enterovirus 71, causes hand, foot and mouth disease and is common throughout the world. Although that disease usually is not fatal, the virus has been reported to cause fatal encephalitis in infants and young children, primarily in the Asia-Pacific region. Currently, no cure exists for the infection. New findings show the precise structure of the virus bound to a molecule that ...

Understanding the continuous corn yield penalty

2013-03-21
URBANA – As escalating corn prices have encouraged many farmers to switch to growing corn continuously, they wonder why they have been seeing unusually high yield reductions over the past several years. The University of Illinois conducted a six-year study that identified three key factors affecting yield in continuous corn (CC) systems. "Prior to this study, the most common management recommendations for continuous corn production were to apply an additional 45 pounds of nitrogen per acre and reserve your best crop land for it," said U of I soil scientist and lead author ...

Park amenities differ according to income of neighborhoods

Park amenities differ according to income of neighborhoods
2013-03-21
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Every community in America has its share of parks. However, park amenities in certain communities can be lacking, which can be detrimental to the health of potential patrons. Now, a University of Missouri researcher has found that while more parks exist in lower-income neighborhoods, they tend to be less attractive than parks in upper- and middle-class neighborhoods, which have more amenities and are more visually pleasing. "Parks are important for physical activity and socialization among community members," said Sonja Wilhelm Stanis, assistant professor ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Less intensive works best for agricultural soil

Arctic rivers project receives “national champion” designation from frontiers foundation

Computational biology paves the way for new ALS tests

Study offers new hope for babies born with opioid withdrawal syndrome

UT, Volkswagen Group of America celebrate research partnership

New Medicare program could dramatically improve affordability for cancer drugs – if patients enroll

Are ‘zombie’ skin cells harmful or helpful? The answer may be in their shapes

University of Cincinnati Cancer Center presents research at AACR 2025

Head and neck, breast, lung and survivorship studies headline Dana-Farber research at AACR Annual Meeting 2025

AACR: Researchers share promising results from MD Anderson clinical trials

New research explains why our waistlines expand in middle age

Advancements in muon detection: Taishan Antineutrino Observatory's innovative top veto tracker

Chips off the old block

Microvascular decompression combined with nerve combing for atypical trigeminal neuralgia

Cutting the complexity from digital carpentry

Lung immune cell type “quietly” controls inflammation in COVID-19

Fiscal impact of expanded Medicare coverage for GLP-1 receptor agonists to treat obesity

State and sociodemographic trends in US cigarette smoking with future projections

Young adults drive historic decline in smoking

NFCR congratulates Dr. Robert C. Bast, Jr. on receiving the AACR-Daniel D. Von Hoff Award for Outstanding Contributions to Education and Training in Cancer Research

Chimpanzee stem cells offer new insights into early embryonic development

This injected protein-like polymer helps tissues heal after a heart attack

FlexTech inaugural issue launches, pioneering interdisciplinary innovation in flexible technology

In Down syndrome mice, 40Hz light and sound improve cognition, neurogenesis, connectivity

Methyl eugenol: potential to inhibit oxidative stress, address related diseases, and its toxicological effects

A vascularized multilayer chip reveals shear stress-induced angiogenesis in diverse fluid conditions

AI helps unravel a cause of Alzheimer's disease and identify a therapeutic candidate

Coalition of Autism Scientists critiques US Department of Health and Human Services Autism Research Initiative

Structure dictates effectiveness, safety in nanomedicine

Mission accomplished for the “T2T” Hong Kong Bauhinia Genome Project

[Press-News.org] Researchers' new method may sharpen microscopic images
UT Dallas researchers are developing a new low-light imaging method that could improve a number of scientific applications, including the microscopic imaging of molecules in cancer research