Soft X-ray microscopy as a screening tool to investigate feline coronavirus infection | New Voices in Infection Biology

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Talk abstract:

Soft X-ray tomography enables 3D nanoscale imaging (~40 nm) of intact, unstained biological cells in their near native state, subject only to cryo-preservation. Soft X-rays are absorbed by organic matter, and therefore most sub-cellular organelles and their sub-structures can be visualized in 3D. Furthermore, correlative fluorescence and soft X-ray microscopy can also be performed on the same sample under cryo conditions. Here we introduce the principles of soft X-ray microscopy, and demonstrate one of its strengths, namely as an unbiased screening tool to identify cellular changes after any perturbation. Specifically, we discuss recent work to investigate feline coronavirus infection, and how anti-depressants may act to inhibit the infection process.