Research Topics
Intravital Imaging for Immune Cell Heterogeneity
Recent single-cell transcriptomic and proteomic analyses have provided a comprehensive understanding of cellular heterogeneity under pathological conditions. However, it remains unclear how these data can be linked to cellular behavior and function in vivo. Using intravital confocal and two-photon microscopy, we can now visualize multiple cell types in vivo simultaneously and analyze individual cells at the single-cell level. For example, we demonstrated intravital imaging–based single-cell behavioral analysis of neutrophils in a tMCAO-induced ischemic stroke model (Lee et al., Circulation, 2025). Based on this, our lab focuses on the heterogeneity of immune cells, such as myeloid and lymphoid cells, using intravital imaging analyses under pathological conditions including ischemic stroke and other inflammatory diseases.
Mechanisms of Neutrophil Activation and Recruitment
Neutrophils, the most abundant circulating leukocytes (50–60%) in humans, are crucial for the innate immune response. Calcium signaling is one of the important pathways that activate neutrophils under inflammatory conditions. We indicated calcium release activated channel regulator 2A (CRACR2A) promotes neutrophil activation and recruitment by regulating store-operated calcium entry (SOCE) in sterile inflammation (Lee et al., Circulation, 2025). Based on this, our lab focuses on the mechanisms underlying neutrophil activation and recruitment on inflamed endothelial cells, including calcium signaling, and aims to identify therapeutic targets based on these mechanistic insights.
Preclinical Studies for Drugs
A rapid real-time intravital microscopy system can be applied to evaluate drug candidates by visualizing live-cell responses in preclinical animal models. We are trying to use the intravital microscopy system to assess drug delivery, therapeutic effects, and tissue recovery in vivo, and to integrate these approaches with conventional methods for a comprehensive evaluation of candidate efficacy and therapeutic potential.
