Seminar: The Rise of Mobile Phone Microscopes

Abstract:

Modern optical microscopes provide a unique window into the organization of nanostructures and the inner workings of biological systems, with new techniques offering improvements in resolution, sensitivity, and speed.  However, not every experiment requires the latest microscopy technology, and many studies benefit from integrating basic imaging with advanced image processing or other measurement techniques.  In a side project that grew out of an undergraduate optics class, my lab has been developing low-cost mobile microscopes that take advantage of the high sensitivity cameras now available in mobile phones.  This talk will describe recent efforts to build portable microscopes to image infectious bacteria, parasitic worms, and viral infections.  I will also describe how combining optical microscopy with force microscopy and microfluidics is advancing our work to understand the mechanical properties of adherent cells and the molecular basis of cytoskeletal organization from purified components.  These studies point to the potential for low-cost mobile microscopes to expand access to high-quality optical imaging both inside and outside traditional laboratory settings.

Bio:

Daniel A. Fletcher, Ph.D. is the Purnendu Chatterjee Professor of Bioengineering and Biophysics at UC Berkeley, where he and his research group develop biomedical technologies and study basic mechanisms of biological assembly involved in cell movements and shape change.  Dr. Fletcher received a B.S.E. from Princeton University and a D.Phil. from Oxford University where he was a Rhodes Scholar.  He received a Ph.D. from Stanford University as an NSF Graduate Research Fellow and was a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Stanford University School of Medicine.  He served as a White House Fellow in the White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy in Washington, DC and co-founded the medical device company CellScope, Inc.  Dr. Fletcher is currently the Associate Chair of the Bioengineering Department at UC Berkeley and Deputy Director of the Physical Biosciences Division of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

Hosted by Professor Carlos Castro.