Chemistry has made invisible biology visible by harnessing and developing diverse fluorescent probes to study phenotypic and functional features of cells and tissues. However, non-genetic, non-perturbing dyes for imaging complex, dynamic biological systems remain limited, despite increasing demand from the cell biology community. This biological challenge demands collaboration between chemists and cell biologists to co-develop the next generation of fluorescent tools to understand dynamic functional behaviour of cells, tissues and organisms.
This joint Royal Microscopical Society and Royal Society of Chemistry Workshop is designed to foster collaboration between chemists, cell biologists and imaging scientists to showcase emerging innovations in fluorescent probe design, development and application. The event will feature invited presentations, early career researcher talks, interactive discussions, and networking opportunities with academic and industry participants. The goal is to showcase novel developments and emerging tools, highlight key areas for further development and enable new collaborations between disciplines to accelerate new tools and commercialisation for broader community adoption.
This joint Royal Microscopical Society and Royal Society of Chemistry Workshop is designed to foster collaboration between chemists, cell biologists and imaging scientists to showcase emerging innovations in fluorescent probe design, development and application. The event will feature invited presentations, early career researcher talks, interactive discussions, and networking opportunities with academic and industry participants. The goal is to showcase novel developments and emerging tools, highlight key areas for further development and enable new collaborations between disciplines to accelerate new tools and commercialisation for broader community adoption.
Scientific organisers
Maddy Parsons
Maddy is Professor of Cell Biology at King’s College London. Maddy completed her PhD in Biochemistry within the Department of Medicine at University College London in 2000. During her PhD she analysed the role of mechanical forces in dermal scarring. She then moved to Cancer Research UK laboratories in London for a 4-year postdoctoral position where she used advanced microscopy techniques including FRET/FLIM to dissect adhesion receptor signaling to the actin cytoskeleton and how this controlled directed cell invasion. Based on these achievements, Maddy was awarded a Royal Society University Research Fellowship in 2005 to establish her own group within the Randall Division of Cell and Molecular Biophysics at King’s College London.
Following completion of her fellowship, Maddy was appointed Reader at King’s in 2013 and Professor of Cell Biology in 2015. Maddy has established collaborations with developmental biologists and clinical researchers to study adhesion receptor signalling in skin blistering, wound healing, inflammation and cancer. She works closely with physicists, biophysicists and other world-leading cell migration groups in the field to develop and apply new imaging technologies to dissect spatiotemporal cytoskeletal signalling events in live cells, tissues and whole organisms. As a result of her interest and applications of advanced microscopy, Maddy developed a strong working partnership with Nikon, which subsequently led to the establishment of the state-of-the-art, world-class Nikon Imaging Centre at King’s College London of which she is Director. Maddy also currently works alongside other biotech and pharmaceutical companies to develop and apply advanced imaging approaches to basic mechanisms that underpin drug discovery.
Adam Sedgwick
Kings College London
Adam Sedgwick is a Lecturer in Chemistry at King's College London. Adam research focuses on developing novel fluorescent probes to understand cell behaviour both in vitro and in vivo. His discoveries have contributed to new tools for studying in vitro cell biology and for imaging-guided surgery in disease.
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