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Antony, H.

Publications and source records attributed to Antony, H..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

CellColoc: A modular, open-source workflow for cell colocalization, segmentation, and feature extraction in microscopy images

Quantitative cell colocalization in fluorescence microscopy often depends on ad hoc combinations of image loading, segmentation, region selection, manual inspection, and spreadsheet post-processing. Such workflows are difficult to transfer across projects and often obscure how intermediate results were produced. We present CellColoc, an open-source Python workflow pipeline for segmentation-based cell colocalization, single-channel segmentation, and cell feature extraction in 2D and 3D microscopy images. CellColoc provides a modular workflow layer that integrates existing segmentation backends, including Cellpose and threshold-based methods, into reusable, script-driven analyses. The package supports channel-wise backend selection, interactive or reusable regions of interest, optional third-channel occupancy and cell-positivity analysis, z-cropping and z-projection, cached post hoc refinement of Cellpose thresholds, and reanalysis after manual mask editing. Analyses are executed from concise user scripts while reusable functionality is kept in a core package. Intermediate artifacts such as ROI masks, per-channel label masks, positive-cell masks, and structured result tables are written to a standardized results directory, promoting transparent inspection, reproducibility, and FAIR-aligned reuse. Public example datasets, a synthetic benchmark, and archived software releases accompany the package. By separating reusable analysis logic from project-specific configuration, CellColoc offers an extensible foundation for community-driven microscopy workflows that need transparent per-cell overlap classification, morphology readouts, and reusable batch analysis.

neuroscience↗

OMIO: A policy-driven Python library for reproducible microscopy image I/O

Modern fluorescence and multiphoton microscopy workflows operate within a heterogeneous ecosystem of file formats, partially overlapping metadata standards, and reader-specific conventions. In practice, this frequently leads to silent axis misinterpretations, loss or corruption of physical voxel size information, and laboratory-specific glue code that is fragile, poorly documented, and difficult to reproduce. OMIO, short for Open Microscopy Image I/O, addresses these issues by providing a lightweight, policy-driven image I/O layer for Python that enforces a canonical, OME-compatible data representation at the API boundary. The central contribution of OMIO is the explicit separation of low-level format access from semantic normalization. Existing reader libraries are used as interchangeable backends for extracting pixel data and available metadata, while OMIO enforces axis conventions, metadata interpretation, and fallback decisions in a centralized and auditable policy layer. This design allows heterogeneous microscopy inputs to be converted into a stable representation without propagating backend-specific assumptions into downstream analysis code. The core design principles of OMIO include canonical axis semantics (TZCYX), robust metadata normalization with explicit and auditable fallbacks, memory-aware operation via optional Zarr-based backends, and workflow-level semantics that extend beyond individual files to folder stacks and BIDS-like project structures. This architecture allows OMIO to orchestrate existing reader libraries into a coherent and reproducible I/O pipeline without replacing or duplicating their functionality. OMIO is implemented as an open-source and community-oriented system in which support for additional file formats and metadata conventions can be added incrementally through modular reader backends. By encouraging the contribution of example datasets, backend extensions, and feature requests, OMIO is designed to evolve alongside emerging acquisition systems while preserving strict semantic guarantees at the interface level. The resulting standardized OME-TIFF outputs are immediately suitable for downstream quantitative analysis and interactive inspection in scientific Python workflows, including workflows based on ImageJ and Napari. By standardizing image data at the I/O boundary, OMIO supports FAIR-aligned data sharing and reproducible microscopy analysis while facilitating the development of interoperable downstream tools.

bioinformatics↗

CX3CR1 modulates migration of resident microglia towards brain injury

Microglia are innate immune cells of the central nervous system (CNS). They extend their processes towards and migrate towards injuries in vivo. However, whether the fractalkine receptor (CX3CR1) influences microglial migration remains unknown. Label-free proteomic profiling predicted changes in RHO-signaling activity that hint at dysregulated cytoskeleton signaling in Cx3cr1-deficient murine cortex tissue. To further investigate microglial migration, we carried out 4-hour interval two-photon in vivo imaging for 72 hours after a laser lesion in the cortex. Cx3cr1-deficient microglia showed enhanced migration towards the lesion. Additionally, length and velocity of microglial fine processes extending towards the lesion were increased in Cx3cr1-deficient microglia. Migration remained unchanged in Ccr2-deficient mice, indicating that monocyte-derived macrophages/microglia did not contribute to microglia accumulation around the lesion. These results demonstrate microglia migration towards CNS injury and suggest CX3CR1 as a modulator of this. Manipulating microglia migration via CX3CR1 therefore is a potential target for treatment of CNS-injury.

neuroscience↗