On 23 May, Associate Professor Nuno F. Azevedo of the University of Porto visited the institute with a guest lecture on the latest methods for analysing the spatial structures of biofilms and microorganisms. Research on the analysis of biofilm and microorganism structures began precisely in collaboration with researchers of RTU USBI, and research in Porto has since developed at a rapid pace. During the lecture, the audience was introduced to the latest research and the methods developed at the University of Porto.
Lecture annotation in English:
The view that microorganisms in nature live mostly isolated and that there is little interaction between microbial species has changed dramatically over the last decades. It is becoming more and more clear that, in many environments, microorganisms have a very “social” life and that the spatial structure of microbial cells can strongly determine the function of the microbial community as a whole. During his talk, prof. Nuno Azevedo will discuss how concepts related to spatially-structured microbial communities, e.g. biofilms, have evolved with time and are affecting current research trends that span from health, industry and the environment. State of the art approaches to spatially characterize biofilms and that are currently being implemented in his lab, such as spectral imaging fluorescence in situ hybridization and spatial transcriptomics, will also be discussed.
More about the associate professor’s work can be found here.
