In recognition of his innovations in microscopy, Bo Huang, PhD, an associate professor in the UCSF School of Pharmacy’s Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, is the recipient of the 2016 Early Career Life Scientist Award, awarded by the American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB).

Huang introduced new algorithms, originally developed for signal processing and medical imaging, to improve super-resolution microscopy, in a technique called stochastic optical reconstruction microscopy (STORM). Huang also repurposed nanobodies, originally made for crystallography as imaging probes, to reveal an unexpected phase in G protein–coupled receptor signaling. Additionally, he retooled CRISPR/Cas9 to develop a powerful approach for visualizing the dynamics of genome organization in live cells. The Huang Lab has become a hub for national and international microscopy collaborations.

The Early Career Awards will be presented in a Minisymposium at the ASCB 2016 Annual Meeting, December 3–7, in San Francisco.