Gail McConnell

Gail McConnell FRSE FInstP FRMS
Born	(1976-08-25) 25 August 1976 (age 48)
Alma mater	University of Strathclyde (BSc, PhD)
Scientific career
Fields	Biophotonics Microscopy
Institutions	University of Strathclyde
Thesis	Nonlinear optical frequency conversion of mode-locked all-solid-state lasers (2001)
Doctoral advisor	Allister Ferguson[1]
Website	strathclydemesolab.com

Gail McConnell FRSE FInstP FRMS (born 25 August 1976^[2][3]) is a Scottish physicist who is Professor of Physics and director of the Centre for Biophotonics at the University of Strathclyde.^[4] She is interested in optical microscopy and novel imaging techniques, and leads the Mesolens microscope facility where her research investigates linear and non-linear optics.^[5][6]

McConnell credits her high school physics teacher with her inspiration to study science.^[7] She studied optoelectronics and laser physics at the University of Strathclyde, where she was taught by Carol Trager-Cowan.^[8][9] She remained there for her graduate studies, earning a PhD in laser technology under the supervision of Allister Ferguson in 2002.^[1][8] She was the first member of her family to go to university.^[10]

McConnell almost worked in telecommunications, but was convinced by Ferguson to join Strathclyde's new Centre for Biophotonics.^[10][11] She became interested in biomedical research and increasingly aware of the limitations of commercial imaging.^[11] Here she worked with Alison Gurney on the development of confocal, multi-photon wide-field microscopes.^[10] Gurney encouraged McConnell to apply for fellowships, and she was a Royal Society of Edinburgh and Research Councils UK (RCUK) postdoctoral fellow.^[8] She developed the world's first white light supercontinuum laser that could be used for confocal microscopy, as well as laser scanning fluorescence microscopy.^[12][13] She attended the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) Practical Course in Advanced Optical Microscopy in Plymouth, which she has continued to support throughout her academic career.^[10]

McConnell directs the Centre for Biophotonics and Mesolens laboratory at the University of Strathclyde,^[14] working on nonlinear and linear optical instrumentation for biomedical imaging.^[15] Nonlinear optics allows physicists precise control of excitation parameters, including the chance to tune the duration of laser pules.^[16]

In 2009, McConnell began working with William Bradshaw Amos and built a new lens, Mesolens, that can allow 3D imaging with a depth resolution of a few microns for objects up to 6 mm wide and 3 mm thick.^[17][18] The Mesolens is a giant optical microscope objective supported by the Medical Research Council (MRC).^[14] It can be used to image large biomedical specimens, including embryos, tumours and areas in brain, as well as scanning large areas of samples in a short amount of time.^[17][18][19] The lens has 260 megapixal effective camera and a magic ratio of 8:1, which can even resolve individual bacteria.^[11][20] As the photometric volume can sample such a large area with sub-cellular detail, the Mesolens may allow for the imaging of rare events.^[20] Mesolens became a University spin-off, but McConnell decided to stay in academia to explore the physics of biomedical processes.^[11] The Mesolens generates such large amounts of data that McConnell became interested in computational biology.^[11] The Mesolens was selected by Physics World as one of the top achievements of 2016.^[21] She discussed the Mesolens on the podcast Not Exactly Rocket Science.^[22]

Alongside the Mesolens, McConnell has explored how laser sources can be used to open voltage-gated ion channels, such as Calcium-activated potassium channels.^[23] She has developed a fast-acquisition version of two-photon excitation microscopy that can be used to image at rates of 100 frames/second.^[24] She created polymer hydrogel beads that are responsive to enzymes.^[25] She is working with the Medical Research Scotland to create high brightness light-emitting diodes.^[26]

In May 2012, she was appointed Professor and Director of the Centre for Biophotonics at the University of Strathclyde.^[10] She leads the Strathclyde Theme of Physics and Life Sciences and is part of the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) Centre for Doctoral Training in Optical Medical Imaging.^[27]

In recognition of her work, McConnell was elected a Fellow of the Institute of Physics (FInstP) in 2010,^[28] a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) in 2019^[29] and a Fellow of the Royal Microscopical Society^[when?] (FRMS).^{[30][31][32][33]}