iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

How much computational stuff do you have to do until you become a computational person!? It reminds me of discussions with people who spend many hours a week at a microscope telling me that they are not 'real' microscopists!

static.klipy.com

Pinocchio: I'm a Real Boy!

ALT: Pinocchio: I'm a Real Boy!

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

FOCUS-3D sounds fantastic. I can't quite believe the incredible amount of training data (& I like the fact that they included such a range of data.) I also like that it is possible to have a quick try with the method using the website option. I'm looking forward to the future developments as well!

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

There's some really cool research in this list! This preprint from Suzi Kim, En Cai and team looking at T cell membrane organisation really stood out to me. Check out NanoMAP! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 07/08/2026

I interviewed Anjali @thekusumbelab.bsky.social for @jcellsci.bsky.social in 2023, & we discussed the challenges of imaging bone. It’s fantastic to see their progress since then in their latest preprint! #sampleprep www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... Interview: journals.biologists.com/jcs/article/...

Images extracted from Ding et al.
e, Images of diaphysis of mouse tibia obtained from a light-sheet microscopy with high-magnification insets immunostained for CD31 (green) and Endomucin (red). Scale bars: upper, 300 µm; lower, 100 µm.

f, 3D images of a murine tibia labeled with CD31 (green), α-SMA (red), and DAPI (grey). Insets displaying the blood vessels in the metaphysis. Scale bars: left, 800 µm; middle, 500 µm; right, 200 µm.

g, Mouse molar prior to and post-tissue clearing. 3D image of a murine molar tooth showing staining for Endomucin (green) and α-SMA (red). Inset showing the selected region of interest. Scale bars: left, 600 µm; right, 90 µm.

h, 3D images of a mouse tibia acquired on a light-sheet microscopy platform post-clearing with vascular surface reconstruction (yellow) and spot rendering of CD8α-positive T cells (violet). Scale bars: panoptic tibia, 1000 µm; inset, 300 µm.

i, Representative light-sheet images of a murine femur labeled with CD8α (violet), Perilipin (yellow), and DAPI (grey) generated by 3D reconstruction. Scale bars: panoptic femur, 500 µm; inset, 100 µm.

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 06/08/2026

Unfortunately these are not stickers, but too nice not to mention..! www.jamiebgall.co.uk/shop?page=2

jamiebgall.co.uk

Shop | Geeky Pins | Scotland | Dr Jamie Gallagher

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FocalPlane @focalplane.bsky.social · 27/07/2026

ICYMI: Our preprint list covering the latest research in bioimage analysis is now up on FocalPlane. Let us know if you have any recommendations! focalplane.biologists.com/2026/07/24/m...

focalplane.biologists.com

Microscopy preprints: bioimage analysis - FocalPlane

Microscopy preprints: bioimage analysis - News

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

🌞🏃Early call for preprints as I've got the day off on Friday! Let us know what preprints we should be adding to the @focalplane.bsky.social preprint list. This week we're focussing on exciting research that uses microscopy to answer questions in biology. focalplane.biologists.com/tag/preprints/

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 01/07/2026

I was so excited when @manuelthery.bsky.social agreed to write about this project for FocalPlane, but I didn't actually appreciate the scale it! The videos from the museum are incredible but the whole project is so much more. Check it out ⤵️

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

I know for a fact that this list is 100% human-generated! For that reason, there are almost certainly some excellent research that I've missed.... Drop me a message if you have any suggestions that I should add to the list.

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 25/06/2026

The 1% from QED has made for an interesting debate here! My initial thoughts - Highlighting research esp preprints is a good thing - Lists are good, rankings maybe not so much - What does a ranking even mean? - Can the LLM read the figures? Isn’t looking at the data how we evaluate research!?

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

Come for the beautiful images and stay for technical tips! Thanks to Benita Wolf for writing this fantastic highlight for FocalPlane on one of my favourite papers from 2026.

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 23/06/2026

Both things can be true at once! 🤪

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

That's what they want you to think, innit!

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

I still don't know what 'innit' actually means... but I do like 'cheers'. I'm also confused as to why my 14yo calls all his friends 'bro' but will call his actual brother 'mate'....

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 15/06/2026

And check out the second webinar from Simon Gilroy for some super-speedy calcium signalling. I just need to persuade someone to write FocalPlane on a leaf and see it light up!! focalplane.biologists.com/2026/05/19/f...

focalplane.biologists.com

FocalPlane features... Thomas Ott and Simon Gilroy - FocalPlane

FocalPlane features... Thomas Ott and Simon Gilroy - News

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 12/06/2026

It's #preprint list time on @focalplane.bsky.social. This week it's all about #bioimageanalysis. Drop me a message if you have any suggestions of preprints uploaded in the last 6 week.

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 12/06/2026

You can't beat a webinar that not only includes fantastic science but also sheep herding videos, Aardman characters and the tardis!

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 26/05/2026

I'm really excited for the 2nd webinar in our new series & I recommend checking out the abstracts from Laura & Sven on FocalPlane! I may also be looking forward to hearing whether it will be @ajcellbio.bsky.social or @joemckenna.bsky.social that will take on the tricky pronunciation of Brillouin!

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 17/02/2026

It was fantastic to chat with Aníbal about the @lisium-chile.bsky.social initiative and Aníbal’s journey to becoming a light-sheet specialist and project coordinator at Universidad Mayor, Chile.

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FocalPlane @focalplane.bsky.social · 24/01/2026

The next deadline for @jcellsci.bsky.social FocalPlane Training Grants is 20 February. These grants are open to early-career researchers in cell biology that require funding to attend a microscopy or bioimage analysis training course. www.biologists.com/grants/jcs-f...

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Guillaume Jacquemet @guijacquemet.bsky.social · 15/01/2026

🚨 Job Alert! 🚨 We have an opening at our Microscopy Core Facility in Turku 🇫🇮. If you love imaging 🔬 and helping scientists succeed, we want you! 👇 abo.rekrytointi.com/paikat/index... #Microscopy #ScienceJobs #CoreFacility #Imaging @turkubioscience.bsky.social

abo.rekrytointi.com

Laboratory Engineer (Senior), in Advanced Imaging, 1.5.2026-31.12.2028

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FocalPlane @focalplane.bsky.social · 15/01/2026

The next stop on our ‘Imaging with…’ series is at Unidad de Microscopía Avanzada, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. Meet the team (including the microscopes), discover how you can access the facility and learn their pet peeve! focalplane.biologists.com/2026/01/15/i...

focalplane.biologists.com

Imaging with… Unidad de Microscopía Avanzada, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile (UMA UC) - FocalPlane

Imaging with… Unidad de Microscopía Avanzada, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile (UMA UC) - News

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 12/01/2026

I was embarrassed by how many chrome tabs I had open so I started using edge for certain things. Of course now I'm embarrassed when I open either browser...

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 09/01/2026

Fridays = preprints and #FluorescenceFriday. I'm looking forward to brightening up a cold, rainy day!

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 09/01/2026

January is the month for dreams!

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 09/01/2026

And the only one I have tried is..... cucumber! Note for 2026 - must do better!

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FocalPlane @focalplane.bsky.social · 08/01/2026

🔬🔦Imaging spotlight: Lock-in-SIM Our latest imaging spotlight focusses on structured illumination microscopy, as Wenjie Liu & team present Lock-in-SIM. Check out their post to discover how & why you should try it with your SIM workflow: focalplane.biologists.com/2026/01/08/i...

focalplane.biologists.com

Imaging spotlight: Lock-in-SIM - FocalPlane

Imaging spotlight: Lock-in-SIM - Tools

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 08/01/2026

Sounds interesting, but I've not yet been more adventurous than mint in my mojito!

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 08/01/2026

Indeed, there are still important goals, like testing whether it is really possible to enjoy drinking a cocktail with a pickled onion in it!

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 07/01/2026

I just read a book called "Why Mummy Drinks"...

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 07/01/2026

Wow, what a fantastic line up of instructors! Don't miss this opportunity to learn from some of the best in the business ❤️🔬

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 06/01/2026

The 2023 version of this meeting was fantastic and the 2026 programme promises to be just as brilliant! (I may also be thinking of chatting all thing microscopy in the Spanish sunshine while huddled inside in a cold and snowy Cambridge.) Sign up by Friday 16 Jan for the early-bird discount ⤵️

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Jennifer Waters @jencwaters.bsky.social · 06/01/2026

🔬 🖥️ Applications are open for the CSHL course Quantitative Imaging: From Acquisition to Analysis (April 6–21, 2026)! An intensive, hands-on course covering advanced fluorescence microscopy and quantitative image analysis using open-source tools. 🗓️ Apply online by Jan 30, 2026

meetings.cshl.edu

Quantitative Imaging: From Acquisition to Analysis

Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Meetings & Courses -- a private, non-profit institution with research programs in cancer, neuroscience, plant biology, genomics, bioinformatics.

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 19/12/2025

Ok, so my 11 yo says he is going to work it out as well, but has informed me that he'll probably need a lot of machinery. He has to do some unfolding to get started, as apparently you can't do inventing in school uniform!

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 19/12/2025

Amazing research and such a fantastic scicomm video. I'd like to show it to my kids, but I'm afraid that it'll backfire and they'll use it to explain why all the clothes in their cupboards are unfolded despite the fact they were folded when they went in....

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 15/12/2025

Thanks for catching that background slide, Chris! And thanks for the shout to @the-node.bsky.social, @prelights.bsky.social & @focalplane.bsky.social, Jez. I'm sad to miss the UK membrane trafficking meeting this year, but hope to see you both at @jcellsci.bsky.social imaging meeting next year!

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 12/12/2025

* holders ^ coverslips ** knives

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 12/12/2025

Love this story from @andreamurillo.bsky.social. It was fun to think back to when @em-stp.bsky.social & @jemimaburden.bsky.social taught me EM and I got to play with gold*, sapphire^ and diamond**! I was so excited to get our paper published in JCS, & now I have the pleasure to be part of the team.

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 03/10/2025

Now that's image stitching! My fun discovery this Friday is this montage of 33 electron micrographs in published in @jcellsci.bsky.social in the 1960s. The original measured 3ft square!

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 14/08/2025

Yes, this! Especially combined with having to heat seal the tubes!

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 12/06/2025

That sounds like a perfect opportunity for a 10 year label-versary party next year!?

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 09/06/2025

Hahaha, I used to do that with torn labels. Each time I'd wonder why I didn't make a fresh label rather than having to transfer 2 labels each time, especially when they were losing their stickiness, but I'd still keep doing it!

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 15/05/2025

I'm looking forward to the lovely pictures from the exciting conference that's going on next week! #sharethejoy #jealous #fomo

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Heather Brown-Harding @microscopyed.bsky.social · 31/03/2025

Probably the coolest thing I learned at #ABRF was that there is a website called "core in a box" all about starting a core and management. Check it out! www.hopkinsmedicine.org/research/res...

hopkinsmedicine.org

Core in a Box

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BioImaging North America @bioimagingna.bsky.social · 31/03/2025

#MicroscopyMonday! Join @bioimagingna.bsky.social for a conversation with @clairebrown514.bsky.social as part of our Career Speaker series! Learn More & Register here buff.ly/9nB1qnC

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Helen Zenner @helenzsci.bsky.social · 27/03/2025

At the end of last year, I was lucky enough to chat with both Jennifer and Manu. Check out these interviews in @jcellsci.bsky.social to find out more about these extraordinary scientists!

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