Madeleine Torcasso (UChicago) – AI+Science Schmidt Fellows Speaker Series

Organized by the University of Chicago’s Eric and Wendy Schmidt AI in Science Postdoctoral Fellowship Program.

Agenda
4:30pm – 5:15pm:   Presentation
5:15pm – 5:30pm:   Q&A
5:30pm – 6:00pm:  Reception

Meeting location
William Eckhardt Research Center. Room 401
5640 S Ellis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637
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Abstract: Our immune systems are complex and dynamic systems that respond to threats – both internal and external – to keep us healthy. However, studying human immunity is a non-trivial task. Until recently, researchers had to trade spatial information for phenotypic resolution. Advances in immunofluorescence (IF) staining chemistry have facilitated highly multiplexed imaging of human tissue, allowing us to probe more than 10x the number of cell phenotypes than standard multiplex fluorescence microscopy. With over 60 unique proteins probed in situ, we can view the immune states in human tissue samples with astonishing detail. While powerful, these rich image data can be difficult to quantify, and therefore difficult to extract biological meaning from. In this talk, I will discuss approaches for detecting and characterizing cells in these high-plex images, and how quantifying these rich images can help us to better understand the spatial organization of dysfunctional immune states.

Bio: Madeleine Torcasso is a biomedical engineer and imaging scientist specializing in quantitative image analysis of biomedical microscopy images. Madeleine received her PhD in Biomedical Engineering from Texas A&M University, focusing on radiative transport modeling to optimize bio-optical imaging and sensing systems. She joined the University of Chicago in 2018, working under the guidance of Dr. Maryellen Giger in the Department of Radiology on several biomedical image analysis projects. Madeleine is currently an Eric and Wendy Schmidt AI in Science Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Chicago. Her research focuses on applying AI to microscopy images to learn more about the spatial distribution of cells, particularly immune cells, in pathological conditions.

Parking
Campus North Parking
5505 S Ellis Ave
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