16th Annual Nikon Small World in Motion Competition Winner Captures Abnormal Movement of Airway Cilia in a Child with Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia
Winning video from Dr. Ning Xu shows the importance of advanced microscopy in diagnosis of diseases defined by movement
MELVILLE, N.Y., Sept. 16, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Nikon Instruments Inc. today unveiled the winners of its 16th annual Nikon Small World in Motion video competition, an integral component of the Nikon Small World competition and a showcase of the world's most dynamic microscopic imagery. The first-place prize was awarded to Dr. Ning Xu for his video showing abnormal beating of airway cilia in a child with primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD), a rare genetic disorder affecting respiratory function. Captured with diffractive super-resolution microscopy, the video shows how motion can reveal important biological details that still images alone cannot fully capture.
Xu is a researcher in optical engineering who develops advanced imaging systems that help scientists observe cellular structures in motion. His winning video focuses on cilia, the tiny hair-like structures that line the airways and beat in coordinated waves to move mucus and debris out of the lungs. In people with PCD, those cilia can beat abnormally, making it difficult for the airways to clear themselves and contributing to recurrent respiratory infections. By capturing that movement in a patient-derived sample, Xu's video offers a powerful view of a process essential to understanding and diagnosing the disease.
"To understand this disease, you need to watch the cilia through dozens of beat cycles, not just a still image," Xu explained.
Recording living airway cilia at the level Xu wanted to see posed a significant imaging challenge. The structures are extremely small, their movement is rapid, and the sample must remain alive and behave naturally during imaging. Many advanced microscopy techniques rely on fluorescent labels or intense illumination, but those approaches can alter or damage living cells. Xu and his collaborators instead focused on controlling the light itself, using multiple light waves and a digital micromirror device to precisely shape illumination, capture rapid movement at high resolution, and minimize the light reaching the sample.
"For over 50 years, Nikon Small World has repeated one simple message: science is beautiful," Xu said. "And Small World in Motion has a second message that I'm even more passionate about: Life is not a still picture. Life moves."
"Dr. Ning Xu's winning video exemplifies why we introduced the video component of this competition 16 years ago: It allows us to use motion to transform our understanding of the microscopic world," said Eric Flem, senior manager, communications and CRM at Nikon Instruments. "Xu's work, and the work of all our winners, reflects the competition's enduring purpose to inspire wonder, fuel discovery, and showcase the artistry inherent in scientific exploration."
Xu said the winning video also reflects the role microscopy can play in scientific communication. While much of his work is ultimately presented through scientific papers, the movement of cilia gives viewers an immediate way to understand that something important is happening at a scale they cannot see unaided.
"When people watch cilia beating, they immediately understand that something beautiful and important is happening inside us," Xu said. "I think this competition turns microscopy into a shared language."
Second place was awarded to Nguyen Nam Nhat for his video of a tiny roundworm and a single-celled Dileptus exploring their microscopic world.
Third place was awarded to Benedikt Pleyer for his video of jellyfish larvae suspended in water droplets.
The 2026 Judging Panel included:
- Joe Dragavon, Ph.D., Director of the BioFrontiers Institute's Advanced Light Microscopy Core and Director of Core Facilities and Shared Instrumentation at the University of Colorado Boulder
- Quinten Geldhof, Technical designer at the Museum of Science in Boston, Massachusetts
- Corey S. Powell, Award-winning science writer, editor, and communicator
- Meredith Sagolla, Ph.D., Director of the Center for Advanced Light Microscopy and Electron Microscopy (CALM-EM) at Genentech
For additional information, please visit www.nikonsmallworld.com, or follow the conversation on Facebook, Twitter @NikonSmallWorld and Instagram @NikonInstruments.
NIKON SMALL WORLD IN MOTION WINNERS
1st Place
Dr. Ning Xu
Tsinghua University
Beijing, Beijing, China
Abnormal beating of airway cilia from a child with Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia (PCD), a genetic disorder affecting respiratory function.
Diffractive Super-Resolution Microscopy
100X (Objective Lens Magnification)
2nd Place
Nguyen Nam Nhat
Nguyen Nam OME
Chu Se, Gia Lai, Vietnam
A tiny roundworm and a single-celled Dileptus explore their microscopic world
Differential Interference Contrast (DIC)
40X (Objective Lens Magnification)
3rd Place
Benedikt Pleyer
Kirchberg, Bavaria, Germany
Jellyfish larvae suspended in water droplets
Darkfield
25X (Objective Lens Magnification)
4th Place
Dr. Andrew Moore
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Janelia Research Campus
Ashburn, Virginia, USA
Synchronized cell division in neighboring cells
Confocal
63X (Objective Lens Magnification)
5th Place
Dr. Patrick Hickey
HYPHA RESEARCH LIMITED
EDINBURGH, MIDLOTHIAN, United Kingdom
Dynamics of mitochondria (green) and chloroplasts (red) in Turtle Vine leaf cells (Callisia repens)
Confocal
40X (Objective Lens Magnification)
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Igor Adameyko
Medical University of Vienna
Center for Brain Research
Vienna, Vienna region, Austria
A tiny, colorful sea slug (Cyerce kikutarobabai) on the move
Darkfield
0.9X (variable zoom up to 40X with objective 10X lens) (Objective Lens Magnification)
Igor Adameyko
Medical University of Vienna
Center for Brain Research
Vienna, Vienna region, Austria
A tiny larval common starfish drifting through the water
Darkfield
0.9X (variable zoom up to 40X with objective 10X lens) (Objective Lens Magnification)
Osama Al-Kayyali & Mr. Sriram Metta, Dr. Hyeongyun Cha
University at Buffalo
Buffalo, New York, USA
Vapor pressure build-up and rupture of crystallizing saltwater droplets
Transmitted Light
2X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Dr. Dylan T. Burnette & Ms. Emma Koory
Vanderbilt University School of Medicine
Cell and Developmental Biology
Nashville, Tennessee, USA
Sarcomere formation in a heart muscle cell
Confocal
100X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Dr. Luis Carlos Cesteros
Durango, Bizkaia, Spain
A live nematode visible after ingestion by larger nematode
Differential Interference Contrast (DIC)
40X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Dr. Bruno Cisterna & Halli Lindamood, Dr. Eric Vitriol
Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University
Department of Neuroscience & Regenerative Medicine
Augusta, Georgia, USA
Mouse neuronal cells showing their actin cytoskeleton and lysosomes
Confocal
100X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Alfred Drummond-Herdman
Independent
Edinburgh, Midlothian, United Kingdom
Dung cannon (Pilobolus sp.) growing on fresh manure and then explosively ejecting its sporangium
Reflected Light
10X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Iker Duro
Science into Images
Can Massuet del Far, Dosrius, Barcelona, Spain
A freshwater worm (Chaetogaster) preying on a ciliate, which disintegrates almost instantly when ingested by the annelid
Darkfield
10X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Frank Fox
Trier University of Applied Sciences
Konz, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany
Rotifer (Stephanoceros fimbriatus) consuming green alga
Darkfield
50X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Gerd Günther
Düsseldorf, NRW, Germany
Alga (Volvox aureus) colonies in motion
Darkfield and Oblique lighting
5X, 10X and 20X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Cora A. Harris
Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
MSG salt crystals forming in drops of solution
Polarized Light
4X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Dr. James Hyde
Southern Arkansas University
Department of Biology
Magnolia, AR, Arkansas, USA
Cleavage in sea urchin (Lytechinus variegatus) embryos after fertilization and then hatching into free moving embryos
Phase Contrast
10X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Zachary Lehmann
Vanderbilt University
Department of Cell and Developmental Biology
Nashville, Tennessee, USA
Actin-binding proteins in a polarized epithelial cell after calcium depletion
Confocal
60X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Dr. Yasaman Maaref
Simon Fraser University (SFU)
Biomedical Physiology and Kinesiology (BPK)
Vancouver, BC, Canada
Live image of beating human heart cells with muscle fibers (green) and calcium signals (red)
Confocal
60X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Jay McClellan
Saranac, Michigan, USA
A northern crab spider (Mecaphesa asperata) scans for prey with the moving retinas in its forward-facing principal eyes
Reflected and Transmitted Light
2X, 5X, 20X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Dr. Andrew Moore
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Janelia Research Campus
Ashburn, Virginia, USA
Growing microtubules and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) in a cultured cell
Confocal
63X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Nguyen Nam Nhat
Nguyen Nam OME
Chu Se, Gia Lai, Vietnam
Freshwater rotifer
Differential Interference Contrast (DIC)
100X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Dr. Eric Peterman
University of Washington
Department of Biology
Seattle, Washington, USA
Skin stem cells (expressing a fluorescent probe involved in cellular motility) closing a wound in adult zebrafish (Danio rerio)
Confocal
16X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Irina Petrova Adamatzky
UWE Bristol
College of Arts, Technology and Environment
Bristol, Somerset, United Kingdom
Hoverfly larva feeding on an aphid, showing its internal digestive system in action.
Reflected Light
5x (Objective Lens Magnification)
Benedikt Pleyer
Kirchberg, Bavaria, Germany
Close Up of Tardigrade found on snow with ripe male gametes
Differential Interference Contrast (DIC)
40X & 60X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Benedikt Pleyer
Kirchberg, Bavaria, Germany
Dinoflagellate (Pyrocystis fusiforme) capable of bioluminescence
Darkfield
200X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Ariel Qassis
Ariel Qassis
Rishon Letsiyon, Israel, Israel
Various life stages of a fungi (chytrids) infecting a rotifer
Differential Interference Contrast (DIC), Darkfield, Phase contrast.
10X - 100X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Dr. Gonzalo Quiroga Artigas
CRBM-CNRS
Montpellier, Herault, France
A pregnant tardigrade making contact with another tardigrade, triggering excretion
Brightfield
20X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Dr. Felix Thoma & Dr. Rodaria Roussou
Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich
Biocenter
Planegg-Martinsried, Bavaria, Germany
Two versions of yeast mitochondrial DNA tracked in different colors
Fluorescence, Image Stacking
100X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Wim van Egmond
Micropolitan Museum
Berkel en Rodenrijs, Zuid Holland, Netherlands
Fungus (Penicillium venetum) developing bright red guttation droplets
Image Stacking
10X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Merel van Luyk
Utrecht University
Developmental Biology
Utrecht, Utrecht, Netherlands
A mouse intestinal organoid with healthy cells (purple) fighting cancer cells (orange)
Fluorescence
20X (Objective Lens Magnification)
About the Nikon Small World Competition
The Nikon Small World Competition is open to anyone with an interest in photography or video. Participants may upload digital images and videos directly at www.nikonsmallworld.com. For additional information, contact Nikon Small World, Nikon Instruments Inc., 1300 Walt Whitman Road, Melville, NY 11747, USA, or phone (631) 547-8569. Entry forms for Nikon's 2027 Small World and Small World in Motion Competitions are available at https://enter.nikonsmallworld.com/.
About Nikon Instruments Inc.
Nikon Instruments Inc. is the US microscopy arm of Nikon Healthcare, a world leader in the development and manufacturing of optical, digital imaging technology and software for biomedical applications. For more information, please visit https://www.microscope.healthcare.nikon.com or contact us at 1-800-52-NIKON.
SOURCE Nikon Instruments Inc.
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