Fluorescence optical microscopy has long been a valuable and minimally invasive tool for visualizing biological structures and functions at the cellular level and beyond.
However, understanding many fundamental biological processes crucial to human health and disease remains beyond the capabilities of conventional optical microscopy.
Super-resolved microscopy, which shifts our perspective...
Light wavefront engineering represents a valuable tool to control the electric field intensity distribution at the sample volume by modulating the phase and/or the amplitude of the light wavefront in a conjugated space. For imaging purposes, this approach has been traditionally adopted on one side to compensate for optical aberrations due to the sample or the medium so as to improve either...
The ability to generate different structured beams in a compact optical path by controlling the input polarization has been a challenge of the last few years in the optics and photonics field. In this regard, we propose designing, fabricating, and characterising new dielectric dual-functional metaoptics that generate 3D orbital angular momentum beams or vector beams along custom-define...
The use of adaptive optics (AO) in biological imaging has emerged as an important technique for overcoming the inherent optical aberrations present in biological specimens. We will provide an overview of the principles, applications, and recent advancements in AO technology within the realm of biological imaging. We will discuss the implementation of AO in various imaging modalities,...
Optical approaches for in vivo neural monitoring using genetically-encoded fluorescent
molecular reporters offer a precious window on brain functions, and on the mechanisms of development, ageing or disease progression. Nonetheless, the existing methods are still shortsighted with respect to the complex biomolecular alterations that accompany these physiological and pathological dynamics. As...
Optical Tweezers exploit light to manipulate objects at the micro- and nanoscale, demonstrating to be a powerful tool for investigating the biological world. Force spectroscopy measurements with optical tweezers allow the application of controlled mechanical stimuli and displacements on individual molecules of DNA, RNA and proteins, while monitoring the time evolution of the system as it...
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are double-layered phospholipid vesicles having nanometric size that are rapidly gaining in popularity as biomarkers of various diseases, acting as cargoes of valuable information from the cell of origin [1]. Despite their value, their current use in clinical practice is still limited. Among the limiting factors, one of the most critical is their isolation. In...
The brain is the most complex and delicate organ in our body. Brain damage typically results in devastating outcomes and consequences not only for the patient's health but also for their quality of life. These effects are caused by the irreversible loss of neurons, building blocks of the brain responsible of signal transmission. Neuronal loss therefore leads to an alteration in communication...
Membrane contact sites (MCSs) enable different intracellular organelles to coordinate their activities, yet the small size and the dynamic nature of these regions hinder their study by current imaging techniques. By designing a series of reversible chemogenetic reporters based on improved, low-affinity variants of splitFAST, we analysed the dynamics of different MCSs at high spatiotemporal...
One of the most exciting advancements in stem cell research of the last few years has been the development of human brain organoids. This in vitro system consists of multiple cell types that can self-organize in three-dimensions representing a brain region able to recapitulate physiological and pathological relevant aspects. Compared to animal models, patient-derived organoids provide emerging...
Astrocytes participate in the clearance of obsolete or unwanted neuronal synapses. However, the molecular machinery recruited for the recognition of synapses is not fully clarified, especially in pathological conditions. Here, we investigated the phagocytic process through individual gene silencing using a druggable gene library. Our study demonstrates that astrocyte-mediated synapse...
In recent years it has become clear that intracellular organelles are not isolated entities, but rather they interact to coordinate their function. Organelles crosstalk occurs at points of proximity between their surfaces, which are kept together by proteinaceous tethers. These closely juxtaposed membrane subdomains are known as membrane contact sites (MCS). The most studied MCS are those...
The zebrafish (Danio rerio) emerged as a powerful tool for scientific research starting from the beginning of the 1980s. Its remarkable characteristics such as the high fecundity, the external fertilization and development, the elevated similarity with the human genome and the possibility to easily manipulate it, made the zebrafish an optimal animal model for basic research and translational...
Worldwide, there are estimated to be fifty million people with neurodegenerative diseases. This number is expected to double every twenty years as the population ages. The powerful combination of light-based techniques and human in vitro models has recently opened unprecedented opportunities for studying disease pathogenesis and performing drug screening. Organoids are 3D in vitro models...
Connexin-32 (Cx32), encoded by the GJB1 gene, play a crucial role in communication between living cells. Mutations in this gene lead to the X-linked form of Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT1X) disease, a progressive neuropathy that damages peripheral nerves. We identified a novel gene mutation (H73L) located at the border between the Cx32 protein's extracellular loop and the transmembrane domain....
The close proximity between intracellular organelles is critical to regulate fundamental cell pathways, such as Ca2+ signaling, lipid metabolism, cell death and ER stress. Notably, alterations of organelle contacts have been reported in several pathologies. Therefore, defining the regulation of organelle juxtaposition and its contribution to different cellular functions is critical. However,...
Controlled actuation of liquid droplets on a surface has important implications in many industrial applications, such as heat transfer, water harvesting, energy generation, and even in clinical diagnostics. In recent years, various strategies have been used to control the motion of droplets, either in an active or passive manner. In this work, an optofluidic platform that performs the...
The intricate regulation of calcium signalling plays a pivotal role in cellular processes, particularly in adrenal cells responsible for aldosterone production. Using calcium sensitive fluorescent ratiometric dye fura-2, this study investigates Angiotensin II (Ang II) induced intracellular calcium oscillations in adrenocortical cells, from primary normal tissue and aldosterone-producing...
Controlled splitting of liquid droplets is a key function in many microfluidic and industrial applications. In recent years, various methodologies have been used to accomplish this task. In this work, I present an optofluidic platform based on an engineered surface formed by coating a z-cut iron-doped lithium niobate (Fe:LiNbO3) crystal with a lubricant-infused layer (LIS),...
Glasses flee from a simple classification within the traditional states of matter such as solids, liquids, or crystalline structures. Their distinctive lack of long-range order sets them apart from crystalline solids on the one hand, while their extremely high viscosity distinguishes them from common liquids on the other. The disordered atomic arrangement of glasses sets off several...
