LipidStar Project:

Super-resolution fluorescence microscopy technologies have revolutionized the life sciences. They make it possible to examine biological structures with unprecedented detail. The latest innovation, MINFLUX, even achieves resolutions at the nanoscale level, enabling the visualization of individual proteins and lipids. Particular attention is paid to the analysis of these biomolecules in biological membranes, as they represent the crucial interface between the cell and its environment, where numerous vital processes take place.

However, studying such biomolecules in a cellular context is extremely demanding, as creating controlled experimental conditions represents a major challenge. Ionovation GmbH has addressed this problem and offers innovative products based on its membrane technology that provide artificial lipid membranes for microscopic examination. This enables the highly complex system “cell” to be reduced to a few biochemical components, and optical experiments can be carried out under controlled conditions without disturbing interactions.

In this project, the Institute for Nanophotonics Göttingen and Ionovation are working together to combine membrane technology with MINFLUX for the first time. The LipidStar module will enable nanoscale studies on artificial lipid membranes and can therefore contribute, for example, to research into the penetration of viruses into cells, to the discovery of new active ingredients and to gaining new insights into the biological effects of nanomaterials such as nanoplastics in the environment.