Seminar/ Colloquium

Title : Super-resolution imaging and optical barcoding via host-guest molecular recognition.
Speaker : Dr. Sarit S. Agasti, Associate Professor, JNCASR Bangalore.
Date : 28/01/2022, 05:30 PM , Online Mode.

Abstract:

Fluorescence microscopy provides the most powerful tool for investigating biomolecules, specifically with the invention of diffraction-barrier breaking super-resolution imaging techniques. Although existing super-resolution imaging techniques offer improved resolution, they require either complex and expensive instrumentation or specialized buffer conditions (buffer with reducing/oxidizing agents) with high-power laser illumination to get optimal results. This talk will describe our recently developed simple, robust, and easy-to-implement super-resolution imaging method using highly selective, strong yet dynamic supramolecular interaction between synthetic host-guest pairs. Unlike existing techniques that rely on externally controlled ON- and OFF-blinking of fluorophores, our technique strategically exploits transient binding between host-guest pairs to obtain autonomous blinking. We subsequently extended this host-guest-based imaging approach to barcode cells via photochemical programming of their molecular recognition event. In this study, we created a distinct approach to selectively barcode cells by spatially controlling the positioning of fluorescent labels using light. Through this design, we readily achieved multiplexed barcoding of many cells in parallel by cycling the photoactivation and fluorophore anchoring steps at different cellular coordinates. This study paves the way for advanced single-cell studies by learning from their individual spatiotemporal dynamics.

Bio-Sketch of the speaker:

Sarit S. Agasti obtained a Ph.D. degree in Chemistry from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, working under the guidance of Prof. Vincent M. Rotello. He subsequently joined Harvard University to pursue his postdoctoral research, where he worked with Prof. Ralph Weissleder and Prof. Peng Yin. Dr. Sarit S Agasti is currently an associate professor at Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Bangalore. His research group focuses on the application of synthetic non-covalent recognition motifs, including host-guest interaction and DNA-DNA interaction, for developing new tools for biosensing, imaging, and therapeutic delivery. He has been selected as a Young Associate of the Indian Academy of Sciences, Bangalore. He is the recipient of the prestigious DBT/Welcome Trust India Alliance Intermediate Fellowship, the Innovative Young Biotechnologist Award (IYBA), Sheikh Saqr Career Award Fellowship, and Merck Young Scientist Award. He also recently joined as an editorial advisory board member of the ACS journal Bioconjugate Chemistry