I’m Jaime, a third year PhD student. I work in Johnston lab of Bateson Centre of the University of Sheffield. My project focusses on how immune cells eat up particles, an important cellular process to control infection called phagocytosis. We greatly rely on imaging methods and simulations to understand the mechanical underpinnings of this process, and scanning electron microscopy is one of our very important tools (see images below). It does not only provide very good resolution of cells being examined, but also allows one to visualise changes on the surface of immune cells when dealing with different types of particles and microbes.
 Me with the scanning electron microscope in the background |  An amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum engulfing bugs Klebsiella pneumniae |
It is important to understand phagocytosis because it describes one of the fundamental means of destroying foreign particles, usually infectious ones called pathogens, by our immune system. This normally requires an immune cell to wrap its membrane around its target so it can be internalised and killed. Phagocytosis is not an exclusive property of our innate immune cells, but also seen in single-celled organisms such as amoeba. We have recently identified a common membrane feature in these cells, and currently investigating its role in the phagocytic uptake and other cell functions. Findings in this project would hopefully give us a better understanding of the mechanics of engulfment process, especially in taking up different types of pathogen in the midst of emerging infectious diseases and rapidly changing environment.
 A mouse macrophage feeling a bead particle, potentially before phagocytic uptake. |  A mouse macrophage showing extensive surface protrusions use for phagocytosis |
