Democratising Microscopy in Latin America: Imaging Across Scales and Regions

Microscopy is a multidisciplinary field that enables us to observe and understand the otherwise invisible small world around us. It has important applications in biology, medicine, ecology, chemistry, materials science, agriculture and the food industry, and many other disciplines. At the same time, microscopy benefits from knowledge in physics, electronics, mathematics, chemistry and biology itself.

Microscopy has played a central role in allowing us to address a plethora of questions in the micro-world highly relevant to One Health in the Global South. One Health recognises that the health of humans, domestic and wild animals, plants, ecosystems, and the environment, are intertwined. Some of the main applications of microscopy in this context include understanding mechanisms governing non-communicable diseases across scales, the diagnosis and monitoring of existing and emerging infectious diseases, the in-depth study of entomology and the relevance of insects for health and disease, mechanisms of antimicrobial resistance, the study of plant biology and the effects of pollutants in soil and water, the link between the biology of bees, pollination and food security, the effect of microorganisms in whole ecosystem biodiversity, and many others.

Latin America and the Caribbean represent a key world region for planetary health, with large areas that are vital for climate change mitigation efforts, and biodiversity preservation. Despite its importance, and the enormous efforts of researchers in the region, progress in terms of research and technology is oftentimes limited due to varied challenges that can impact investment in infrastructure and capacity-building. Given the high costs of high-end microscopy technologies, efforts to democratise access have been underway in many countries in the region. Further cohesion and collaboration at a regional and international level is still necessary to guarantee equal access.

Through this workshop we aim to enable early-career researchers from the Global South to network with scientists from around the globe, exchange ideas on microscopy technology and applications, become familiar with open hardware and software projects that can be adapted to the various regions, and to discuss approaches for future microscopy-based research with leading experts in the field.

In this workshop we seek to foster collaborations between early-career researchers with vast expertise in multiple fields of science, and world experts in the field of microscopy and image analysis for bidirectional capacity strengthening, and global participation in a way that is inclusive of perspectives of Latin America and the Global South.

We will focus on the following topics:

• Microscopy in Latin America, focusing on examples of lightsheet, FLIM, cryo-EM, and AFM
• Open Hardware for affordable microscopy
• Open Software for affordable and accessible image analysis
• Outreach, dissemination, and open science initiatives in microscopy
• The value of applied microscopy to solve local questions and advance local research. This will include infectious diseases, agriculture, ecology and developmental biology
• The value of microscopy in education
• Opportunities for Global South researchers in microscopy
• Resources and networks to support Global South researchers