Dresden 2026 – wissenschaftliches Programm

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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik

BP 33: Bioimaging

BP 33.4: Vortrag

Donnerstag, 12. März 2026, 16:00–16:15, BAR/0205

Imaging viral infection in live cells with confocal interferometric scattering microscopy (iSCAT) — •Anirudh Khemani¹, David Albrecht¹, Jan Renger¹, Marco Heisig¹, Kiarash Kasaian¹, and Vahid Sandoghdar^{1, 2} — ¹Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, 91058 Erlangen, Germany — ²Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin, 91054 Erlangen, Germany.

Fluorescence-based microscopy can suffer from observational bias, functional perturbation, phototoxicity, or insufficient signal. Confocal interferometric scattering microscopy [1] provides quantitative, label-free imaging of nanoscale dynamics in live-cell processes. iSCAT is a shot-noise-limited homodyne interferometric technique. By rejecting out-of-focus light, confocal iSCAT yields high structural contrast of nano-bioparticles, like vesicles and viruses, and we validate structural assignments with fluorescence. We apply this platform to study rare, dynamic events in the vaccinia virus life cycle. To improve experimental control and statistics, we developed a microfluidic system to deliver individual virions with defined timing and position. Furthermore, we combine confocal SCAT with concomitant wide-field iSCAT [2] to span a large range of spatial and temporal resolutions. We report on complex processes such as virus-induced nucleation of actin tails and high-speed tracking of single virions at cell-cell junctions and on membranes. [1] Küppers, M., Albrecht, D., et al. Nat. Commun. 14, 1962 (2023). [2] Mazaheri, M., Kasaian, K., et al. Optica 11, 1030 (2024).

Keywords: Live cell imaging; Interferometric scattering microscopy; Microfluidics; Viruses