Core Facility Session โ Shaping the Future Using New Technologies
Chairs: Jochen Behrends, Borstel, Anne Gompf, Dresden
Core facilities are increasingly becoming innovation hubs that drive interdisciplinary research through the adoption and integration of emerging technologies. This session will explore how next-generation cytometry platforms, image-enabled cell sorting, AI-supported workflows, and digital communication strategies are reshaping the way core facilities operate, collaborate, and support scientific discovery.The session brings together perspectives from technology implementation and scientific outreach. Jochen Lamote will discuss the integration of advanced flow cytometry and image-based sorting technologies into modern research infrastructures, highlighting practical experiences from the VIB Flow Core Leuven and the adoption of next-generation instrumentation.Helena Jambor is a scientific information designer and data visualization expert. She combines art and science to create clear and engaging visuals that help communicate complex biomedical research. In our session she will share insights into how effective illustrations can transform scientific findings into accessible and comprehensible stories.Together, the speakers will provide insights into how technological innovation, data-driven workflows, and modern communication strategies can strengthen the role of core facilities as future-oriented partners in research and beyond. The session aims to stimulate discussion on user-centered service development, sustainable implementation, and the evolving role of core facilities in an increasingly digital and interdisciplinary research landscape.
Jochen Lamote
VIB Flow Core, VIB Technologies, and VIB Center for Cancer Biology, Department of Oncology, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
https://vibneuroscienceleuven.be/en/flow-cytometry
Biography
Jochen Lamote is Head of the VIB Flow Core Leuven within VIB Technologies. He trained as a bioscience engineer at Ghent University and completed a PhD at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, developing flow cytometry protocols for porcine plasmacytoid dendritic cells. During his postdoctoral work at Johnson & Johnson, he advanced complex cell sorting and panel design workflows, combining intracellular staining with transcriptomics, and developed a strong interest in imaging cytometry through the Amnis ImageStream.
He founded a local FACS Expertise Center at the VIB-KU Leuven Center for Cancer Biology in 2020, which evolved into the institutional VIB Flow Core Leuven in 2023, supporting research in cancer biology, neuroscience, and microbiology.
As an early adopter of emerging technologiesโincluding the BD FACSDiscover S8โJochen combines innovation with a strong application-driven approach, aligning panel design and sorting strategies with what the biology and downstream workflows actually require. Within VIB Technologies, he works across core pipelines and collaborates with TechWatch, the VIB Flow Core Ghent, and the Flow Satellite in Antwerp to bring in new technologies when they are readyโand when they serve the purpose.
๐๐ง๐ง๐จ๐ฏ๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐ข๐ฌ “๐๐จ๐จ๐ฅ”. ๐๐ฎ๐ญ ๐ญ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐ฆ๐โ๐ฐ๐ก๐ฒโ๐ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ ๐ก๐๐ฏ๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ ๐จ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ฆ๐๐ค๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ฌ ๐ฌ๐จ ๐๐จ๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐ข๐๐๐ญ๐๐? ๐๐ ๐ข๐ญ ๐๐จ๐๐ฌ๐งโ๐ญ ๐๐ง๐ฌ๐ฐ๐๐ซ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ข๐จ๐ฅ๐จ๐ ๐ฒ, ๐ข๐ญ ๐๐จ๐๐ฌ๐งโ๐ญ ๐๐๐ฅ๐จ๐ง๐ . ๐
Helena Jambor
Institute for Data Analysis, Artificial Intelligence, Visualization and Simulation, University of Applied Sciences of the Grisons, Chur, Switzerland andNational Center for Tumor Diseases, University Cancer Center, NCT-UCC, Universitรคtsklinikum Carl Gustav Carus an der Technischen Universitรคt Dresden, Dresden, Germany.
(https://www.fhgr.ch/en/persons/person/jambor)