Yale University received a $307,738 Project Grant from the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Biological Sciences program (CFDA 47.074) to develop an innovative imaging tool called HOLOCON. HOLOCON combines 3D holographic imaging and fluorescent microscopy to simultaneously visualize and quantify free-swimming bacteria and biofilms at the single-cell level. This tool will allow researchers to observe in real-time how resident biofilms repel invading free-swimming bacterial cells, providing new insights into bacterial population dynamics. The project, which runs from March 2025 to February 2027, aims to integrate the new imaging capabilities with bacterial genetics, biochemistry, and surface engineering techniques to paint a comprehensive picture of the interactions between sessile and planktonic bacterial communities.
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