GE Healthcare 2013 Cell Imaging Competition winners announced

GE Healthcare Life Sciences has announced the three winners of the GE Healthcare 2013 Cell Imaging Competition. For seven years, the annual competition has showcased the beauty of cells and the research of cellular biologists from around the world.

This year’s competition attracted over 100 entries from scientists who are using either high-content analysis or high- and super-resolution microscopy to investigate at the cellular level a wide variety of diseases such as cancer, muscle disease and the effects of parasitic infections. An expert scientific panel of six judges shortlisted the finalists for each category ahead of a public vote, which received over 23,000 responses.

The three winners are:

1st place: Microscopy category - Vanessa Auld, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.
Therapeutic focus: Neurodegenerative disease.
Image description: Drosophila neuromuscular junction stained for extracellular matrix proteins (green and blue) and the nerve terminal (red). (Photo: Business Wire.)

1st place: High-Content Analysis category - Martin Barr, St James’s Hospital and Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland.
Therapeutic focus: Cancer.
Image description: Lung adenocarcinoma cell stained for F-actin (green), mitochondria (red) and DNA (blue). (Photo: Business Wire.)

Regional winner (Microscopy category) - Graham Wright, Institute of Medical Biology, A*STAR, Singapore.
Therapeutic focus: Fertility.
Image description: Mouse spermatocyte spread stained for KASH-5 and SCP3 (red and green) and DNA (blue). (Photo: Business Wire.)

“This year’s three winning images are once again incredibly beautiful and compelling, reminding us of the cellular complexity behind disease and why the study of cells is so important,” said Eric Roman, general manager of research and applied markets, GE Healthcare Life Sciences. “We were delighted to receive so many outstanding entries to the competition, which highlights how cell imaging is helping scientists explore the universe of the cell and is advancing our understanding of so many life-threatening and life-limiting diseases. I’d like to thank all the contestants for sending us their images, the judging panel and everyone who cast a vote.”

The winners will see their prize-winning images light up Times Square, New York, at a special event between 25-27 April. The images can also be viewed online, alongside all the other finalists’ entries, at www.gelifesciences.com/cellimagecompetition.

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