Microscopic Image Analysis with Applications in Biology

The automatic analysis of microscope imagery plays an increasingly important role in biosciences research. Novel imaging devices such as the confocal and two photon (or multi-photon) electron microscope, automated stages for electron microscopy, and higher resolution electron tomography enable researchers to image biological systems at the cellular and sub-cellular scale. These datasets pose a number of challenges that are very distinct from conventional clinical imagery in their size and abundance, the detail of relevant features and their statistics. Sophisticated algorithms are necessary to process such imagery and extract biologically relevant features and information. The design, development and application of such algorithms are the focus of this workshop.

The first international workshop on Microscopic Image Analysis with Applications in Biology, MIAAB 2006 was held in conjuction with MICCAI 2006. Based on the strong interest and high quality of the submissions we decided to hold this workshop as an independent one day event in 2007. Biological datasets pose a number of challenges that are very distinct from conventional clinical imagery in their size and abundance, the detail of relevant features and their statistics. Sophisticated algorithms are necessary to process such imagery and extract biologically relevant features and information.

We welcome original, previously unpublished papers on image analysis of microscopic data that focus on biomedical applications. Papers on all microscopic data including widefield, fluorescence, confocal, multiphoton, multi-spectral, phase contrast, differential interference contrast, quadrature tomographic are welcome.

The suggested list of topics are

• Image formation and reconstruction
• Multi-spectral and volume segmentation
• Shape analysis and morphology
• Visual tracking and motion analysis of timelapse microscopy data
• Inter- and intra-modality image registration
• Computer-aided detection and counting
• Feature extraction and pattern recognition enabling high-content analysis
• Image analysis for high-throughput screening
• Statistical methods and population based analysis
• Spatiotemporal dynamics of signaling pathways
• Disease-specific analysis of tissue arrays for pathology

The workshop will be hosted at the DIMACS center at the Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscatway, NJ. The close proximity to a number of pharmaceutical and industrial research labs will facilitate an interaction between computer scientists, biologists and engineers from both academia and industry.

Paper submission deadline: July 30 2007
Notification of Acceptance: August 31 2007
Workshop date: Sep 21 2007