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Akaash Kumar

@akaashkumar.bsky.social

650 followers 700 following 18 posts

Interdisciplinary scientist interested in technology development, microscopy and biological sciences. Multispectral live cell imaging of membrane trafficking. MRC LMB, Cambridge, UK.

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Akaash Kumar @akaashkumar.bsky.social · Nov 20

Hello Bluesky! I am an engineer/scientist currently working at the MRC LMB in Cambridge UK. During my PhD I developed new imaging technologies to shed light on the dynamics of living cells e.g. here is a movie of 6 organelles in live human cancer cells. Follow for more updates! #science #biology

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Akaash Kumar @akaashkumar.bsky.social · 22d

In future work, I am now using our multispectral technology to study membrane trafficking pathways in cytotoxic T cells and related immunotherapies, to decode how T cells are able to eliminate virally-infected/cancer cells and what happens in patients when these processes go wrong. Updates to come!

Akaash Kumar @akaashkumar.bsky.social · 22d

We demonstrated the ability to simultaneously image trafficking of five different endogenous receptor classes using de-novo binders from David Baker's lab, by adding the multispectral technology to a state-of-the-art single objective light sheet microscope, capturing data at 3 volumes per second.

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Akaash Kumar @akaashkumar.bsky.social · 22d

The technology we developed is compatible with any camera-based microscope and by using polycistronic plasmids and live-cell dyes (e.g. @spirochrome.com) we can image multiple organelles in live cells simultaneously.

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Akaash Kumar @akaashkumar.bsky.social · 22d

🚨Publication alert🚨
My first, first-author paper is now out in @natphoton.nature.com! Our paper describes an iterative spectral unmixing algorithm and eight-channel camera-based hardware we developed enabling unmixing of low SNR live-cell data at video rates. www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Multispectral live-cell imaging with uncompromised spatiotemporal resolution - Nature Photonics

A tree-like arrangement of dichroic mirrors and multiple cameras coupled with an iterative spectral unmixing algorithm enables multispectral imaging of live cells in up to eight spectral channels with...

www.nature.com

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Reposted by Akaash Kumar

James Manton @jamesdmanton.bsky.social · 23d

We present a simple method to easily increase the imageable depth of an expansion microscopy gel on a typical inverted microscope ten-fold, using some carefully placed FEP film and a water dipping objective lens:

A comparison of imaging an expansion microscopy hydrogel with a water dipping objective lens, using either eye gel as an immersion medium or a combination of Immersol W, water and a thin FEP film. In both cases, the sample is supported by a thin FEP film rather than a coverglass.

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Akaash Kumar @akaashkumar.bsky.social · May 20

Today's light sheet video of actin dynamics in cytotoxic t cells... so much fun to come!

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Akaash Kumar @akaashkumar.bsky.social · Feb 14

Thank you very much for the feature and the article!! A nice surprise before the weekend...

Biomedical Picture of the Day BPoD @bpodaily.bsky.social · Feb 14

New approach with an unmixing algorithm & 8-channel image acquisition enables multispectral live-cell imaging

📷: @akaashkumar.bsky.social et al
@jamesdmanton.bsky.social @cellbiol-mrclmb.bsky.social @mrclmb.bsky.social in @biorxivpreprint.bsky.social

➡️: bpod.org.uk/archive/2025... with
Ant Lewis

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Akaash Kumar @akaashkumar.bsky.social · Feb 7

Congratulations @lara-kruger.bsky.social ! We wish you all the best!

Lara Krüger @lara-kruger.bsky.social · Feb 6

Lets goo (very soon)...
Merci beaucoup to the exquisite @deriverylab.bsky.social at the amazing @mrclmb.bsky.social. I had a lovely, lovely time!

MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology @mrclmb.bsky.social · Feb 6

Congratulations to @lara-kruger.bsky.social, postdoc in @deriverylab.bsky.social in @cellbiol-mrclmb.bsky.social, who is leaving the LMB to establish her own research group at @institutcurie.bsky.social in Paris!
Best of luck to you Lara!
#LMBAlumni

Reposted by Akaash Kumar

Derivery Lab - MRC LMB @deriverylab.bsky.social · Jan 17

🚨 Paper Alert 🚨

Our preprint describing Elongator as a selective microtubule polymerase that rewrites PTMs on microtubules is now published! Check it out: www.embopress.org/doi/full/10....

Elongator is a microtubule polymerase selective for polyglutamylated tubulin | The EMBO Journal

imageimageElongator, an established tRNA-modifying complex, can also stabilize microtubules during asymmetric cell division. This study shows that Elongator subcomplexes achieve this by binding to mic...

www.embopress.org

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Reposted by Akaash Kumar

Derivery Lab - MRC LMB @deriverylab.bsky.social · Jan 20

Congrats to @juliemiesch.bsky.social who was awarded a Postdoc Mobility grant by @snf-ch.bsky.social to support her research for two years. Her postdoc research will focus on the biophysical regulation of water buffering in the cell.

Picture of Julie wearing a red top and black bottoms, holding a bottle of champagne

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Reposted by Akaash Kumar

Wallace Marshall @wallaceucsf.bsky.social · Dec 23

Mitochondria consist of networks of cylindrical tubes, right? Not necessarily! - in our new preprint, @gavsturm.bsky.social investigates how mitochondria transiently adopt a beads-on-a-string morphology

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

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Reposted by Akaash Kumar

MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology @mrclmb.bsky.social · Dec 16

Congrats to @akaashkumar.bsky.social who has won the PhD Award from the Cambridge Centre for Physical Biology for his work developing a novel microscopy system with @deriverylab.bsky.social & @jamesdmanton.bsky.social in @cellbiol-mrclmb.bsky.social.
www.physbiol.cam.ac.uk/akaash-kumar
#LMBintheNews

Akaash Kumar stands next to his multispectral imaging hardware which features several cameras. Behind him, a computer screen shows a colourful cellular image captured with his new microscopy system.

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Akaash Kumar @akaashkumar.bsky.social · Dec 13

Simultaneous multispectral imaging of seven organelles in live cells using our multispectral spinning disk confocal microscope! #FluorescenceFriday
You can read more about this technology in our updated pre-print: www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Akaash Kumar @akaashkumar.bsky.social · Dec 12

Thank you!

Akaash Kumar @akaashkumar.bsky.social · Dec 11

Very happy that my work on developing multispectral live cell imaging technology has been recognised by the Cambridge Centre for Physical Biology! Thanks for the award!

Derivery Lab - MRC LMB @deriverylab.bsky.social · Dec 11

Congrats to @akaashkumar.bsky.social , a postdoc in the lab, for winning the PhD Award from the Cambridge Centre for Physical Biology. His PhD research worked on the development of a multispectral imaging system to image up to 8 fluorophores similtaneously for tackling complex biological questions!

Congrats to Akaash, a postdoc in the lab, for winning the PhD Award from the Cambridge Centre for Physical Biology. His PhD research worked on the development of a multispectral imaging system capable of imaging up to 8 fluorophores similtaneously and tackling complex biological questions with this!

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Akaash Kumar @akaashkumar.bsky.social · Dec 1

Hi Mike, @dmikeando.bsky.social could I be added to this please?

Reposted by Akaash Kumar

Derivery Lab - MRC LMB @deriverylab.bsky.social · Nov 22

In June, @akaashkumar.bsky.social and @jamesdmanton.bsky.social had their Multispectral live-cell imaging paper released on to the BioRxiv www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Multispectral live-cell imaging with uncompromised spatiotemporal resolution

Multispectral imaging is an established method to extend the number of colours usable in fluorescence imaging beyond the typical limit of three or four, but standard approaches are poorly suited to li...

www.biorxiv.org

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Reposted by Akaash Kumar

Derivery Lab - MRC LMB @deriverylab.bsky.social · Nov 22

Then, in September @akaashkumar.bsky.social passed his PhD viva, becoming the latest doctor to emerge from the lab! He then won the RMS Early Career Award 2024 in October.

Akaash stands in front of some stairs, holding a bottle of champagne whilst wearing a suit.

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Reposted by Akaash Kumar

Derivery Lab - MRC LMB @deriverylab.bsky.social · Nov 22

Later in October, the LMB had their yearly annual symposium with Post-doc Lara Kruger winning the Steitz Prize for her talk and @akaashkumar.bsky.social winning the Perutz Prize for his PhD work!

On the bottom left is Akaash Kumar, bottom right is Lara Kruger, behind lara is Manu Derivery and behind Akaash is James Manton, all holding glasses of champagne.

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Akaash Kumar @akaashkumar.bsky.social · Nov 22

Some personal news: my wife and I are finally homeowners! We got the keys to our home in Cambridge today, very exciting times!

Akaash Kumar @akaashkumar.bsky.social · Nov 21

Likewise! Took me a while aha hope you're well!

Akaash Kumar @akaashkumar.bsky.social · Nov 21

Would love to be added to this, for all things multispectral microscopy

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Akaash Kumar @akaashkumar.bsky.social · Nov 21

Aha thank you very much!

Akaash Kumar @akaashkumar.bsky.social · Nov 21

Would love to be added. Many updates on all things multispectral live cell imaging!

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Akaash Kumar @akaashkumar.bsky.social · Nov 20

Thanks for this, super useful for new joiners to bluesky (like me)! Could I be added to this group please?

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