BME PhD Defense Seminar: Nathan Clark

Microscope Characterization using Phase Retrieval Applied to Determine the Spatial Distribution of Membrane-Associated Proteins in Hematocytes

Co-Supervised by Professors Richard Waugh and James Fienup

Abstract

Modern cell biology relies heavily on fluorescent tags and microscopy; precisely knowing the distribution of a single type of protein or molecule is critical. However, in fluorescence microscopy, the optical system images both light in the focal plane and light from out-of-focus, and the localization of labeled protein is degraded or lost because of the out-of-focus light. We use analytic and numerical methods to account for out-of-focus light and reconstruct the fluorophore distribution along the cell. This method is then applied in studying the material properties of the erythrocyte cytoskeleton.