Giovedì 19 Marzo 2015 presso il Dipartimento di Informatica - Scienza e Ingegneria, in Aula Busi, Mura Anteo Zamboni 7, Bologna, alle ore 10:00 si terrà il seminario "Voyaging at Nanoscale: Reconstructing, Enhancing, Retrieving Biological Information using Electron Tomography Imaging" tenuto dal Dott. Mauro Maiorca
Title:
Voyaging at Nanoscale: Reconstructing, Enhancing, Retrieving Biological Information using Electron Tomography Imaging.
Abstract:
Biological investigations often requires the analysis of large, incomplete, and disorganized data, obtained through imaging experiments. In particular, Electron Tomography is an established technique for producing detailed 3D image volumes necessary for investigating the structure and function of cellular components at nanoscale. Furthermore, Electron Tomography, combined with other methodologies such as single-particle analysis, can lead to the determination of structure of proteins and other biomolecules at near-atomic resolution. Unfortunately, the analysis of Electron Tomographic data still poses many challenges. For example, the sample-preserving low exposure image acquisitions and the partly unpredictable behavior of electron-specimen interactions can lead to an overall low image contrast, which impairs the ability to distinguish and retrieve relevant biological information.
In this talk Dr. Maiorca will highlight his research on image reconstruction, image enhancement, and features retrieval on Electron Tomography data, with applications to the spatial mapping of the PfEMP1 export pathway in Plasmodium falciparum and the structure of the immature HIV-1 capsid in intact virus particles .
Bio:
Mauro Maiorca obtained his BSc in Computer Sciences at Bologna University under the supervision of Prof. Danilo Montesi, and a MSc in Biomedical Image Sciences from the Image Sciences Institute (ISI), Utrecht University (The Netherlands) under the supervision of Prof. Josien Pluim and Prof. Liz Sonenberg. Mauro completed his PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Melbourne University (Australia) in Prof. Leann Tilley lab. During his PhD, Mauro acted as student representative, president of the Biochemists and Molecular Biologists at the Bio21 Institute (BAMBII), member of the ARC Centre of Excellence in Coherent X-ray Science (CXS), member of the European Society for Molecular Imaging (ESMI), and has been recipient for 9 different scholarships. Prior to his PhD, Mauro worked as research assistant at the Melbourne University Virtual Environment for Simulation (MUVES), and research fellow at the CRC Hearing, Department of Otolaryngology, Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, Melbourne University. Mauro is currently employed as postdoctoral scientist (Career Development Fellow) at the MRC National Institute for Medical Research (NIMR), London, UK.