Community-developed checklists for publishing images and image analyses
Nature Methods, vol. 21, pp. 170–181
Abstract
Images document scientific discoveries and are prevalent in modern biomedical research. Microscopy imaging in particular is currently undergoing rapid technological advancements. However, for scientists wishing to publish obtained images and image-analysis results, there are currently no unified guidelines for best practices. Consequently, microscopy images and image data in publications may be unclear or difficult to interpret. Here, we present community-developed checklists for preparing light microscopy images and describing image analyses for publications. These checklists offer authors, readers and publishers key recommendations for image formatting and annotation, color selection, data availability and reporting image-analysis workflows. The goal of our guidelines is to increase the clarity and reproducibility of image figures and thereby to heighten the quality and explanatory power of microscopy data.
Authors 53
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Leibniz-Forschungsinstitut für Molekulare Pharmakologie · Human Technopole
Affiliation as printed
Fondazione Human Technopole, Milano, Italy. schmied@fmp-berlin.de
Leibniz-Forschungsinstitut für Molekulare Pharmakologie (FMP), Berlin, Germany. schmied@fmp-berlin.de
Fondazione Human Technopole, Milano, Italy
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Max Planck Institute of Immunobiology and Epigenetics
Affiliation as printed
Max Planck Institute of Immunobiology and Epigenetics, Freiburg, Germany
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Radboud University Nijmegen · Radboud University Medical Center
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Medical BioSciences Department, Radboud University Medical Centre, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
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Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile · The University of Osaka
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Graduate School of Engineering Science, Osaka University, Osaka, Japan
Laboratory for Molecular Mechanics of Cell Adhesions, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile Santiago, Santiago de Chile, Chile
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Euro-BioImaging ERIC, Bio-Hub, Heidelberg, Germany
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Carl Zeiss AG, Oberkochen, Germany
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Scientific Image Processing and Analysis, BioVoxxel, Ludwigshafen, Germany
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International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory
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Nanophotonics and BioImaging Facility at INL, International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory, Braga, Portugal
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Phi Optics, Inc., Champaign, IL, USA
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Biochemistry Center Heidelberg, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
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Imaging Platform, Broad Institute, Cambridge, MA, USA
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Universidade do Porto · i3S - Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto
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i3S, Instituto de Investigação e Inovação Em Saúde and INEB, Instituto de Engenharia Biomédica, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
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Leibniz-Forschungsinstitut für Molekulare Pharmakologie
Affiliation as printed
Leibniz-Forschungsinstitut für Molekulare Pharmakologie (FMP), Berlin, Germany
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Translational Research Institute · Queensland University of Technology
Affiliation as printed
School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
TissueGnostics GmbH, Vienna, Austria
Translational Research Institute, Queensland University of Technology, Woolloongabba, Queensland, Australia
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University of Wisconsin–Madison
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Department of Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
Department of Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, University of Wisconsin—Madison, Madison, WI, USA
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Centre for Cellular Imaging Core Facility, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
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Allen Institute for Cell Science
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Allen Institute for Cell Science, Seattle, WA, USA
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Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Basel, Switzerland
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University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School
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RNA Therapeutics Institute, University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, Worcester, MA, USA
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University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, USA
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Advanced Light Microscopy Unit, Centre for Genomic Regulation, Barcelona, Spain
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University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School
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RNA Therapeutics Institute, University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, Worcester, MA, USA
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European Bioinformatics Institute
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European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), European Bioinformatics Institute, Hinxton, UK
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Centre for Cell Imaging, the University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
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Fondazione Human Technopole, Milano, Italy
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Department of AI Research, Kapoor Labs, Paris, France
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The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
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MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
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MIA Cellavie Inc., Montreal, Quebec, Canada
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Sylvia E. Le Dévédec Aachen Division of Drug Discovery and Safety Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research
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Division of Drug Discovery and Safety, Cell Observatory, Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research, Leiden University, Leiden, the Netherlands
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Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge, Sweden
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Key Laboratory for Modern Measurement Technology and Instruments of Zhejiang Province, College of Optical and Electronic Technology, China Jiliang University, Hangzhou, China
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Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência
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Advanced Imaging Facility, Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Oeiras, Portugal
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Euro-BioImaging ERIC, Bio-Hub, Heidelberg, Germany
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Bioimage Analysis and Research, Heidelberg, Germany
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MicRoN Core, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
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Life Imaging Center, Signalling Research Centres CIBSS and BIOSS, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
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Bio-Imaging Resource Center, the Rockefeller University, New York, NY, USA
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Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute
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Baker Institute Microscopy Platform, Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
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School of Physics, Engineering and Technology, University of York, Heslington, UK
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Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Basel, Switzerland
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King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences · King Abdullah International Medical Research Center · National Guard Health Affairs
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King Abdullah International Medical Research Center (KAIMRC), Medical Research Core Facility and Platforms (MRCFP), King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences (KSAU-HS), Ministry of National Guard Health Affairs, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
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Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics
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Light Microscopy Facility, Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics Dresden, Dresden, Germany
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ariadne.ai (Germany) GmbH, Heidelberg, Germany
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Space Biosciences Division, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, USA
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École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne
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BioImaging and Optics Platform, Faculty of Life Sciences (SV), École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
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Microscopy and BioImaging Consulting, Image Processing and Large Data Handling, Gera, Germany
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Bio-Imaging Resource Center, the Rockefeller University, New York, NY, USA
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Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry
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Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, Martinsried, Germany
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Oregon National Primate Research Center · Oregon Health & Science University
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Imaging and Morphology Support Core, Oregon National Primate Research Center, OHSU West Campus, Beaverton, OR, USA
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University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School
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Program in Molecular Medicine, University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, Worcester, MA, USA
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Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Microscopy Imaging Center, Center for Biomedical Shared Resources, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT, USA
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Christian Tischer corresponding
European Molecular Biology Laboratory
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Centre for Bioimage Analysis, EMBL Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany. christian.tischer@embl.de
Centre for Bioimage Analysis, EMBL Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
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Helena Klara Jambor corresponding
Nationales Centrum für Tumorerkrankungen Dresden · Technische Universität Dresden
Affiliation as printed
NCT-UCC, Medizinische Fakultät TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany. helena.jambor@tu-dresden.de
NCT-UCC, Medizinische Fakultät TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany
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