Imaging and Sequencing of Single Molecules, and a Man Who Has Kept Us Busy for 100 Years

The ability to image single molecules at room temperature has brought new biological insights. Single cell whole genome sequencing offers the newest tool for biological discovery. For the small metabolites and drug molecules,
ultra sensitive detection by stimulated Raman scattering allows label-free imaging in live cells and organisms.

About the speaker:
Prof. Sunney Xie is a well-renowned scientist whose group develops new physical and chemical tools and solves challenging biological problems. Some of the research accomplishments have been in single molecule spectroscopy and
imaging with applications to molecular and cell biology, single molecule enzymology which probes enzyme activities and conformational dynamics of single molecules, and coherent anti-Stoke Raman scattering and stimulated
Raman scattering microscopy for noninvasive examination of living cells and organisms. Prof. Xie is considered as the founding father of single-molecule enzymology. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and Fellow of
APS and Biophysical Society and recently a recipient of E.O. Lawrence Award. This colloquium is part of the DCS activities in the International year of Chemistry, 2011.