Xiaowei Zhuang

Investigator, Howard Hughes Medical Institute; Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology; Professor of Physics. Leader in single-molecule biophysics and super-resolution bioimaging. Among the first to use single-molecule fluorescence spectroscopy to study biomolecules. These studies provided fundamental understandings of RNA folding and nucleic acid-protein interactions. Studies of biomolecular complexes, such as chromatin remodeling enzymes, using single-molecule FRET revealed how dynamics within biomolecular assemblies critically impact their function. Her application of single-particle tracking to viral entry opened a new window to study virus-cell interactions and helped elucidate the infection mechanisms of influenza, polio, and dengue viruses. Invented STORM, a super-resolution optical microscopy that is based on single-molecule imaging and photoswitchable fluorophores to break the diffraction-limited resolution barrier of light microscopy. Developed three-dimensional super-resolution fluorescence imaging, which has provided more than a 20-fold improvement in resolution compared to conventional light microscopy. Discovered photoswitchable dyes of different colors and implemented multi-color super-resolution imaging. Studies of cellular structures with STORM provided novel insights into the cytoskeletal structure in neurons, molecular architecture of synapses, and the organization of chromosomes. The STORM technology has been adopted by many laboratories worldwide.