Images of Research

For millions of years, bacteria have fought one another with specialized chemical weapons. As a result of this evolutionary antagonism, microorganisms are a major source of antibacterial drugs, contributing to nearly 75% of antibiotics used in our clinics. At times, the vast chemical diversity that microbial natural products possess can be observed by the naked eye. This is demonstrated by the myriad of colors seen in each fraction tube, as every shade represents a unique class of pigmented compounds isolated from the culture of a Micromonospora sp.

Alien lymph node

This 3D immunofluorescence image captures interactions among PD-L1 (green), plaque (red), and microglial cells (cyan) in a late-stage Alzheimer’s mouse brain (~13 months). DAPI staining (blue) highlights cell nuclei, and the image reveals clear co-localization of abundant plaque and microglial cells within the sample.

This image has a playful twist, almost like a holiday scene with swarming Pseudovibrio brasiliensis Ab134 lighting up the agar. Swarming motility is a coordinated movement of bacterial cells across a surface, often resulting in intricate, branching colony patterns. The bright red colony on the left is glowing with mCherry, while the one on the right is shining in green, thanks to GFP — a nod to the classic Christmas colors. The swarming patterns create an eye-catching display, almost like nature’s version of festive decorations.

The unexpected often happens in the lab. This picture resulted from the contamination of an old plate stored for months in the cold room. The green organism (which I believe is a fungus) reminded me of mountains in a beautiful landscape.

Cat tongue in microneedle patch! Captured with the Keyence VHX6000 microscope at UIC’s Nanotechnology Core Facility, this image showcases gelatin methacryloyl (GelMA)-based microneedles, which intriguingly resemble the textured surface of a cat’s tongue. Fabricated using polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) molds and tuned through UV exposure, these microneedles highlight how nature’s patterns can emerge in advanced drug delivery systems!

Packing a 5-foot-tall glass column with Sephadex LH20 to perform a size-exclusion separation to purify microbial Natural Products.

My lab mate found this fungus on a plate that was supposed to be sterile. The texture and colors look beautiful to me.

During an experiment we encounter many hurdles, one of which is fungal contaminations. we came across this happy looking fungus during one of mine. Though it gave hard time to us but seems to show a happy face to us.

Lava lymph node.

Sometimes even micro-organism wants to show some love and affection to the researcher working with them.

This image is a cover art for a recent submitted paper. It shows PRC1697, tested on different strains of Plasmodium falciparum parasites. All these strains have a different mutation and by this a different mechanism of resistance for anti-malaria drugs. The tested strains showed no resistance for PRC1697. That’s the reason, why the compound is irresistible against P. falciparum.
This image was designed in the Procreate® app and used Adobe stock images of the blood cells, which where modified to have transparency, and the parasites. These were modified by changing the form, giving a tag and color to give better contrast. The molecule was drawn and optimized by calculations in Chem3D. After placing every element together, the lighting and color was matched by color grading. Finally by applying Gaussian and motion blur to selected element in the drawing, we could highlight certain parts and giving depth to the drawing.

The “Schisto Cube” is an epoxy resin mold containing suspensions of adult male and female Schistosoma mansoni. S. mansoni are a species of intravascular parasitic worms and the causative agent of Schistosomiasis. People become infected when their skin is penetrated by the free-swimming larval stage called cercariae when exposed to contaminated water. From the skin the parasite will journey into the blood vessels, through the heart and lungs and ultimately to the liver where they develop into adult worms and finally reside in the superior mesenteric veins. The pathophysiology of schistosomiasis is secondary to an inflammatory response to eggs trapped in various tissues which adult worms can produce up to 3,000 eggs daily. The cube measures 1.5 inch in each direction compared to worms which are roughly 1 cm long.

“When all else fails and you’re feeling defeated, your TLC plate brings a spark of hope!”
Weeks of relentless work in the lab brought nothing but failed synthetic reactions, and my frustration grew with every attempt. Then, as I developed another TLC plate, I noticed something unexpected—a faint smiling face under the UV lamp. It was as telling me to cheer up and take it easy. That tiny moment of serendipity broke through the tension, reminding me to find joy in the process and keep pushing forward. Even in the toughest times, science has a way of surprising us when we least expect it.

From the archive of unusable data: mouse breast tumor image revealing the different compartments of the tumor microenvironment. Blue, the nuclei, representing single cells. Green, the tumor mass expanding. Yellow, its matrix holding it together- entrapping the immune cells, represented in red. Zoom in and observe this battlefield. See the immune cells, immobile, defeated where the matrix is thick- see them infiltrate the tumor mass where the matrix is thinner. Count the number of cells in the zoomed in field of view and envision the scale of this combat, in an area smaller than a millimeter squared. Look at the edges of the tumor, where the cells cascade into the surrounding media. Note the web-like structure of the matrix supporting its tumor. These are the structures and patterns of life and death; they are the manifestations of the universe recreating itself, in us; imaged with light. It is simple, and complex, and we are so lucky to see it.

This is a 3D immunofluorescence image capturing the complete vasculature network of the mouse brain, stained with CD31-Alexa633. It resembles a broken heart – hence its name.

Captured through the lens of the Keyence VHX6000 microscope at UIC’s Nanotechnology Core Facility, this image shows Gelatin methacryloyl (GelMA)-based microneedles designed for topical drug delivery applications. These micron-scale needles, developed by replicating master structures using polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) molds, offer a minimally invasive approach with potential for efficient therapeutic administration, representing advancements in drug delivery technology.

Tubulin structure of ovarian cancer cells after taxol treatment, looking like a croissant

Confluent flask of murine oviductal epithelial (MOE) cells with a knockdown of the tumor suppressor PTEN (MOE PTENshRNA), making them tumorigenic.

This image showcases the UIC logo creatively reimagined using cone-shaped microgels that form a granular hydrogel. These microgels are linked through photocrosslinking and embedded with fluorescently labeled lipid nanoparticles, demonstrating their potential for sustained drug delivery of various therapeutics. The customizable shapes of these granular hydrogels, combined with their cell infiltration capabilities, open new avenues for personalized and targeted drug delivery systems.