Recent advances in imaging modalities and analyses (AI/ML) platforms in infections and viral immunology

Significant advancements in biomedical imaging modalities over the past two decades have matured and are now ripe for application within microbial infection and viral immunology. The integration of quantitative optical and electron microscopy with AI/ML platforms offers profound insights into the mechanisms and dynamics of viral infection, helping to identify key therapeutic targets. It is now possible to directly interrogate individual virions and other microbes in their native states, thus generating unprecedented structural, functional, and mechanistic data in temporal and/or three-dimensional space. Furthermore, the nature of host immunoreactivity can be studied in extraordinary detail, providing new and critical insights for the development of next-generation prophylactic and therapeutic interventions against microbial infections.This Research Topic highlights advancements in optical and electron microscopy imaging within the context of viral-infected systems and immunology. By curating a collection of reviews and original articles, we explore how recent progress in fluorescence microscopy, in vivo optical imaging, cryo-EM, and cryo-ET has enabled the tracking of host-pathogen interactions at the molecular level. These tools offer a window into viral dynamics, providing critical data for the development of novel intervention and therapeutic strategies. Furthermore, the integration of AI/ML platforms with these imaging modalities is set to accelerate breakthroughs in the field. This Research Topic aims to showcase how these innovative approaches provide transformative insights into previously inaccessible biological realms. We invite reviews and original research articles covering one of the following themes:• Optical and electron microscopy studies of viruses • AI/ML platforms for virology and immunology research • Direct visualization of single particles to assess structural dynamics, function, immunoreactivity, host-pathogen interactions• In vivo imaging of microbial infectionsPlease note that manuscripts consisting solely of bioinformatics or computational analysis of public genomic or transcriptomic databases which are not accompanied by robust and relevant validation (clinical cohort or biological validation in vitro or in vivo) are out of scope for this Research Topic. Topic editors: Krishanu Ray, Azizul Haque, Brandon Keele Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/77081/recent-advances-in-imaging-modalities-and-analyses-aiml-platforms-in-infections-and-viral-immunology