KNVM

Microbiology can be beautiful! The KNVM wants to celebrate this beauty with a photography contest and give microbiologists the opportunity to showcase their work in a creative way.

Voting is open during the Scientific Spring Meeting of the KNVM/NVMM (April 1 & 2, 2025). Please cast you vote HERE.

A | Hiding in the crevices: Staphylococcus aureus biofilm on titanium
Lydia Speijker - MUMC+

This scanning electron microscopy image shows Staphylococcus aureus biofilm formation after 24 hours of growth on a corundum-coated titanium surface. Tianium is often used in hip implants. The rough surface usually facilitates osteoblast settling, however the structure of the coating provides deep crevices where bacteria can also anchor and multiply. These sheltered niches contribute to the persistence of biofilms in prosthetic joint infections.

B | Strongyloides stercoralis in broncho-alveolaire lavage sample
Kara Osbak - Maasstadziekenhuis

An immunocompromised patient with respiratory insufficiency and sepsis underwent diagnostic bronchoalveolar lavage. Microscopy revealed numerous viable Strongyloides stercoralis worms, indicating Strongyloides stercoralis hyperinfection syndrome, a potentially lethal condition. The patient was treated with ivermectin and survived.

C | Life in a pond
Rob Mesman - Radboud University

Collage of dark-field microscopy images of various micro-algae found in a sample from a nearby pond.

D | The beauty of fungi
Xuewei Wang - Westerdijk Fungal Biodiversity Institute

Estimates suggest that around 15 million fungal species exist worldwide, yet only a fraction of these have been formally identified and named. This new Acropilus species, isolated from soil in France, exhibits ascomata with distinctive red-colored hairs, as shown in the picture. Documenting biodiversity like this is essential for deepening our understanding of biological processes in nature.

E | Ophiocordyceps unilateralis infection in a Camponotus ant
Emmeline van Roosmalen - Utrecht University

For my PhD research, I study how the fungus Ophiocordyceps unilateralis manipulates the behavior of its host ant. Each year, I travel to Florida to collect samples of both the ants and the fungus, which is where I captured this image. It is an ant infected by Ophiocordyceps as it undergoes the fungus’s life cycle. While the ant was still alive, the fungus altered its behavior, compelling it to climb vegetation and eventually bite onto a twig and hug it, called “the death grip.” After taking the ant’s life, the fungus consumed its internal tissues to fuel a stalk and fruiting body, which then emerged from the ant’s neck. 

Join the KNVM microphotography contest to celebrate the beauty of microbiology. The deadline for submission was February 28, 2025.

Microbiology can be beautiful! The KNVM wants to celebrate this beauty with a photography contest and give microbiologists the opportunity to showcase their work in a creative way.

The photographs:

• must relate to microbiology. It can be anything related to microbiology, from a microscopic picture, art on a agarplate to a stack of plates.
• must be your own artwork, i.e. you must own the copyright.
• in .eps or .tiff format, minimal size 1200 pixels (width) and maximum 15Mb.

Three to five winning photographs are selected by the KNVM board. These photos are exhibited on the Scientific Spring meeting of the KNVM and the ultimate winner is selected using the votes of the participants of the Spring meeting. The final winner will receive a gift card. The winning photographs are also shown on the KNVM website.

Every participant can upload a maximum of two photographs, please use a separate form for each submission.

Submissions are now closed.