Research Areas
Bellingham-Johnstun, K., Thorn, A., Belmonte, J. M., & LaPlante, C. (2023). Microtubule competition and cell growth recenter the nucleus after anaphase in fission yeast. Molecular Biology of the Cell, 34(8). https://doi.org/10.1091/mbc.E23-01-0034
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The complex structure of the mechanosensory PVD neuron in C. elegans, which displays neuronal beads upon aging and cold-shock exposure, make quantitative analysis of degeneration challenging. Photo courtesy of the San Miguel lab. 
Light sheet images of a tissue cleared mouse brain. (left) before alignment, clear misalignments of the channels can be observed. (right) after 3D alignment, the color channels overlap. Photo courtesy of the Greenbaum lab. 
Quantitation of immunolabeled xyloglucan at the tip of a narrowing cotton fiber. Photo courtesy of the Haigler lab. 
A. Field of fission yeast cells imaged by confocal microscopy. The cells express mEGFP-Myo2p, a critical motor protein involved in cytokinesis. The protein labels the contractile ring during cytokinesis (arrowhead) and the protein complexes precursor to the contractile ring (arrow). Colors are inverted black on white. B. Field of fission yeast cells imaged by SMLM. The cells express Myo2p-mEos3.2 that labels the contractile ring (arrowhead) and the protein complexes precursor to the contractile ring (arrow). Color code shows the time during the 40 second acquisition when single molecules were captured. Dashed outlines highlight single cells in both panels. Photo courtesy of the LaPlante lab. 
IR-MALDESI (Invented at NC State) Mass Spectrometry Imaging of a whole mouse. The mass spectra shown above the tissue reveal 1000’s of molecules are present at each location. Heat maps represent specific m/z values and their distribution throughout the entire body of the mouse including intestine, heart and brain / spinal cord specific expression. Interesting m/z values, using METASPACE are then annotated – for a given MSI experiment, 1000’s of images are generated with the goal of understanding pathway biology and the detection of exogenous compounds (e.g., neurotoxins) in disease post-mortem brains relative to controls (healthy and disease controls). Photo courtesy of the Muddiman lab. 
GCaMP7-labeled Mauthner neuron (startle command neuron, left) before and 6 msec after an abrupt acoustic stimulus. High-speed camera images of head-restrained larval zebrafish showing characteristic startle response of the tail (red arrowhead, right). Photo courtesy of the Marsden lab. 
Wild type vacuoles from closed and open stomata labeled by BCECF staining. 3-D rendering of stomata vacuoles was generated with a Zeiss 880 confocal microscope with Airyscan. Photo courtesy of the Rojas-Pierce lab. 
3D Nano-CT image of a whole Xenopus embryo, with both raw (black and white) and segmented 2D projections through the stomach. The color-coding highlights the left and right inner (endoderm) and outer (mesoderm) tissue layers. Photo courtesy of the Nascone-Yoder lab. 
Folded DNA configuration at nanochannel Y-junction. A) Schematic with indicated flow velocities , B) experimental data with brightness profiles along the 3 channel axes. Photo courtesy of the Riehn lab. 
Genetically labeled cells (Green and red) in a sagittal section of an embryonic mouse forebrain (late-stage embryo) highlighted by the blue stain. The sparse labeling provides a unique opportunity for highly quantitative and computational analysis of developmental events in the forebrain. Photo courtesy of the Ghashghaei lab. 
Example ablation experiment of a dividing fission yeast cell. (A) Fission yeast spindle and nuclear envelope (imaged by spinning disk confocal fluorescence microscopy) before and after ablation. In response to ablation, cellular forces distort the nuclear envelope . (B) Spinning disk confocal image of nucleus (pink) and nuclear envelope (blue) in a dividing fission yeast cell. (C) Experimental schematic. Photo courtesy of the Elting lab. 
Microfluidic devices are used to generate blood vessels “on-a-chip”. In the right conditions, endothelial cells (white) self-assemble into open channels that can be perfused with cells, drugs, or fluorescent dyes (green). The eventual vascular geometry that develops depends on the type of cells that are introduced. Photo courtesy of the Shelton lab. 
In adults, new blood vessels form via a process called angiogenesis. We can watch endothelial cells (white) sprout into a hydrogel chamber, resulting in different degrees of sprouting depending on whether the gel contains cells from healthy tissue (A) or cancer (B). These cells also produce extracellular matrix such as collagen 1 (magenta), remodeling their environment as they extend sprouts (C). Photo courtesy of the Shelton lab. 
Algorithmically-aligned C.acutatum germination
Principal Investigators
Dr. Stefanie Chen
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Dr. Mary Elting
Elting Lab
Dr. Troy Ghashghaei
Ghashghaei Lab
Dr. Alon Greenbaum
Greenbaum Lab
Dr. Candace Haigler
Haigler Lab
Dr. Caroline LaPlante
LaPlante Lab
Dr. E.J. Lopez-Soto
Lopez-Soto Lab
Dr. Kurt Marsden
Marsden Lab
Dr. David Muddiman
Muddiman Lab
Dr. Nanette Nascone-Yoder
Nascone-Yoder Lab
Dr. Mette Olufsen
Olufsen Lab
Dr. Orlando Arguello-Miranda
Arguello-Miranda
Dr. Robert Riehn
Reihn Lab
Dr. Marcela Rojas-Pierce
Rojas-Pierce Lab
Dr. Adriana San Miguel
San Miguel Lab
Dr. Sarah Shelton
Shelton Lab
Dr. Melissa Srougi
Srougi Lab
Dr. Hong Wang
Wang Lab