Dates Wednesday 6 February 2019, 8h45 - 16h00
Venue IBS Seminar Room
Scientific Organisers

UOC Organisers:
Alejandro Fernandez-Martinez, ISTerre, Institut des Sciences de la Terre, University Grenoble Alpes, Grenoble, France

ESRF Organiser:
Marine Cotte
Hiram Castillo-Michel
Keynote Speakers

Prof. Stefano Iotti, Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology (FaBit) Università di Bologna, Italy

Dr. Isidro Abreu , Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Spain
Administrative Assistant  Anaïs Fernandes
Contact udm2-um19@esrf.fr

Programme available HERE

Aim & Scope

Immediately after the discovery of X-rays, their potential application in biology and medicine was demonstrated by the radiography of Miss Roentgen’s hand. One century later, synchrotron-based X-ray microscopy (in its various modalities) has become increasingly powerful for the study of biological samples. These techniques offer clear advances in terms of imaging capabilities thanks to their multi-scale capacity (from cm to nm) and multi-modal contrast.

The wide range of lateral resolution and correlatively field of view available offers the possibility to study systems from the organ scale down to the sub-cellular scale. Due to the hierarchical organization of complex biological systems, the functions at the levels of organ and organ system are deeply related to function regulations at the cellular and organelle levels.  Therefore, the possibility to perform analysis at all levels of hierarchy is a clear asset.

The wide range of X-ray microscopy techniques (being in scanning mode with µXRF, µXRD, µXANES, ptychography or in full-field mode via phase-contrast imaging) provides complementary characterization, in terms of elements, species, structural composition and orientation, and morphology and allows addressing the natural functioning of biological systems and their response to external stimuli (e.g., drugs, implants, contrast agents for medical imaging, pollutants, etc…).

This micro-symposium will give to the ESRF users the opportunity to present recent applications of synchrotron-based X-ray microscopy in a variety of biological specimens, and in a wide range of research fields. The technical challenges associated to these applications will also be discussed. On this respect, the participants to this micro-symposium are strongly encouraged to attend the tutorial about sample preservation, preparation and environment which will be held on February 4th. Finally, the opportunities offered by the EBS and by the newly upgraded beamlines will also be presented.