FURI | Fall 2025

Open-source Microscopy and Automation for Scalable Tissue Culture

Human stem cell-derived tissue and organoid models have been generated for every vital organ and are increasingly used in biomedical research. For all their potential, generating organoids remains laborious, taking months of continuous attention by a highly skilled human operator. This project aims to develop an open-source epifluorescence microscope and automation platform using an Opentrons OT2 pipetting robot to monitor cells within a 96-well plate with automated image acquisition and processing for tissue culture health and morphological upkeep. This method overcomes the challenges of manual cell culture by improving reliability, scalability, and parallelization. This work will accelerate research breakthroughs in disease modeling, developmental biology, regenerative medicine, and other tissue culture applications afforded by organoid culture through laboratory automation.