Bader Al Alwan

"Mr. Al Alwan has been a PhD student in my laboratory since 2013. Mr. Al Alwan has been working on the development of live-cell single-molecule fluorescence imaging techniques to investigate cellular interaction during hematopoietic stem/progenitor cell (HSPC) homing. This is truly challenging interdisciplinary research that requires knowledge and technique in both cell biology and optical microscopy. Although Mr. Al Alwan did not have previous experience in the microcopy field, he has been eager to lean cutting-edge advanced fluorescence microscopy techniques such as single-molecule imaging. This demonstrates his ability to learn new research field as well as new research technologies. Mr. Al Alwan discovered the formation of extremely long (up to 100 micrometers) and flexible protruding structures from HSPCs during the cell interacting with selectin proteins in the presence of external force. To the best of my knowledge, Mr. Al Alwan found this unexpected behavior for the first time. This achievement was possible because he has been making a persistent effort for many years, demonstrating his dedication to scientific research. During his four years in my laboratory, Mr. Al Alwan submitted two coauthor papers in which the method he developed was used an a key technique. Currently, he is preparing for writing his lead author paper. Mr. Al Alwan attended one of the most important international conferences in the field (Conference on Methods and Applications in Fluorescence) in September, 2017 and presented his research. While this was his first time to attend and present his research in an international conference, his presentation attracted many researchers, demonstrating a broad impact of his study not only in cell biology but also in microscopy. Mr. Al Alwan will be able to complete his PhD research project in one year and move on to the next stage. I am happy to respond to any particular questions that you may have. Sincerely yours, Satoshi Habuchi"