Spatial Biology Company Alpenglow Biosciences Unveils 3D Imaging Interface for Light-Sheet Microscopy

Alpenglow Biosciences, a spatial biology company focused on 3D imaging, presented a new imaging interface, titled "LUMI", for light-sheet microscopy at the Association of Biomolecular Resource Facilities (ABRF) 2025 Annual Meeting, held from March 23 to 26 in Las Vegas.

LUMI is built to work with the 3Di Light-Sheet Microscope, a core element of the Aurora 3D Spatial Biology Solution. It offers an intuitive scan setup, real-time imaging feedback, and a “Scout-to-Zoom” workflow that enables users to move from wide-field overviews to high-resolution imaging. This development aligns with the company’s broader efforts to integrate efficient data management and AI-powered image analysis into its imaging platform.

Source: Alpenglow Biosciences

Nicholas P. Reder, MD, MPH, CEO and co-founder of Alpenglow Biosciences, stated that the interface is intended to make high-throughput 3D imaging more accessible and to simplify complex microscopy workflows.

Background

Alpenglow Biosciences specializes in 3D imaging with AI-supported analysis for drug development and clinical diagnostics. Its platform enables the non-destructive digitization of entire tissues to provide detailed spatial insights into mechanisms of action, efficacy, and toxicity. The company reports that five of the top 10 pharmaceutical companies currently use its platform to improve development timelines and therapeutic success rates.

Source: Alpenglow Biosciences

Alpenglow’s platform stems from work that began in 2014 at the University of Washington, where Reder, then a pathology resident, collaborated with Dr. Jonathan Liu, Dr. Adam Glaser, and Dr. Larry True to develop an open-top light-sheet microscope for faster and more automated tissue analysis. The company was founded as Lightspeed Microscopy in 2018 to commercialize the technology and rebranded as Alpenglow Biosciences in 2022 to reflect its broader focus on drug development and clinical diagnostics. The company raised $4 million in 2021 to scale operations and has since secured more than $24 million in contracts from ARPA-H and the NIH to advance cancer and prostate diagnostics.

Applications

Alpenglow Biosciences specializes in AI-enabled 3D imaging for analyzing tissue samples at high resolution. Its light-sheet microscopy platform provides detailed spatial insights into tissue structure and function, supporting applications in dermatology, immuno-oncology, and multi-field research.

• In dermatology, the 3D Derm Score Assay is designed to analyze the skin microenvironment, including peripheral innervation and cutaneous inflammation. It provides high-resolution 3D imaging and quantitative analysis of nerve fiber density and immune cell clusters. The platform supports flexible marker customization for studying conditions like atopic dermatitis, hidradenitis suppurativa, and alopecia.
   
• In immuno-oncology, the 3D I/O Pro Assay analyzes the tumor immune microenvironment, offering detailed classification of tumors (hot vs. cold), immune exclusion patterns, and tertiary lymphoid structures. The platform delivers advanced spatial mapping and lymphocyte quantification, helping to identify immune cell behavior and tumor-immune interactions.
   
• Alpenglow’s platform also supports multi-field applications across various tissue types, including skin, lung, gastrointestinal, and vascular systems. In lung tissue, it measures fibrosis and immune infiltrates in conditions like idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). In gastrointestinal tissues, it quantifies villus height, mucosal thickness, and immune infiltration for conditions like celiac disease and ulcerative colitis. In vascular research, it measures vessel dimensions and branching patterns for heart and tumor angiogenesis studies.

Topics: Tools & Methods