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This is a searchable collection of scientific photos, illustrations, and videos. The images and videos in this gallery are licensed under Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial ShareAlike 3.0. This license lets you remix, tweak, and build upon this work non-commercially, as long as you credit and license your new creations under identical terms.

Epigenetic code

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The "epigenetic code" controls gene activity with chemical tags that mark DNA (purple diamonds) and the "tails" of histone proteins (purple triangles). Crabtree + Company View Media

Z rings in bacterial division

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Lab-made liposomes contract where Z rings have gathered together and the constriction forces are greatest (arrows). Masaki Osawa, Duke University View Media

Fly by night

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This fruit fly expresses green fluorescent protein (GFP) in the same pattern as the period gene, a gene that regulates circadian rhythm and is expressed in all sensory neurons on the surface of the fl Jay Hirsh, University of Virginia View Media

RSV-Infected Cell

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Viral RNA (red) in an RSV-infected cell. Eric Alonas and Philip Santangelo, Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University View Media

Mouse mammary cells lacking anti-cancer protein

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Shortly after a pregnant woman gives birth, her breasts start to secrete milk. This process is triggered by hormonal and genetic cues, including the protein Elf5. Nature Cell Biology, November 2012, Volume 14 No 11 pp1113-1231 View Media

Genetic mosaicism in fruit flies

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Fat tissue from the abdomen of a genetically mosaic adult fruit fly. Genetic mosaicism means that the fly has cells with different genotypes even though it formed from a single zygote. Akhila Rajan, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center View Media

Developing Arabidopsis flower buds

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Flower development is a carefully orchestrated, genetically programmed process that ensures that the male (stamen) and female (pistil) organs form in the right place and at the right time in the flowe Nathanaël Prunet, Caltech View Media

Glow-in-the-dark salamanders

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These six-month-old axolotls, a kind of salamander, glow green and blue under ultraviolet light. That's because they were genetically modified to make harmless green fluorescent protein, or GFP. View Media

Cryo-EM reveals how the HIV capsid attaches to a human protein to evade immune detection

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The illustration shows the capsid of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) whose molecular features were resolved with cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM). Juan R. Perilla, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign View Media

A Bacillus subtilis biofilm grown in a Petri dish

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Bacterial biofilms are tightly knit communities of bacterial cells growing on, for example, solid surfaces, such as in water pipes or on teeth. Gürol Süel, UCSD View Media

Planting roots

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At the root tips of the mustard plant Arabidopsis thaliana (red), two proteins work together to control the uptake of water and nutrients. Philip Benfey, Duke University View Media

Color-coded chromosomes

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By mixing fluorescent dyes like an artist mixes paints, scientists are able to color code individual chromosomes. Anna Jauch, Institute of Human Genetics, Heidelberg, Germany View Media

The nascent juvenile light organ of the Hawaiian bobtail squid

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A light organ (~0.5 mm across) of a Hawaiian bobtail squid, Euprymna scolopes, with different tissues are stained various colors. Margaret J. McFall-Ngai, Carnegie Institution for Science/California Institute of Technology, and Edward G. Ruby, California Institute of Technology. View Media

Honeybees marked with paint

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Researchers doing behavioral experiments with honeybees sometimes use paint or enamel to give individual bees distinguishing marks. Gene Robinson, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. View Media

Bacteriophage P22 capsid

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Cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) has the power to capture details of proteins and other small biological structures at the molecular level.  This image shows proteins in the capsid, or outer co Dr. Wah Chiu, Baylor College of Medicine View Media

X-ray co-crystal structure of Src kinase bound to a DNA-templated macrocycle inhibitor 2

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X-ray co-crystal structure of Src kinase bound to a DNA-templated macrocycle inhibitor. Markus A. Seeliger, Stony Brook University Medical School and David R. Liu, Harvard University View Media

Life of an AIDS virus (with labels and stages)

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HIV is a retrovirus, a type of virus that carries its genetic material not as DNA but as RNA. Crabtree + Company View Media

Bacteriophage P22 capsid, detail

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Detail of a subunit of the capsid, or outer cover, of bacteriophage P22, a virus that infects the Salmonella bacteria. Dr. Wah Chiu, Baylor College of Medicine View Media

Ion channel

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A special "messy" region of a potassium ion channel is important in its function. Yu Zhoi, Christopher Lingle Laboratory, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis View Media

Mouse brain 1

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A mouse brain that was genetically modified so that subpopulations of its neurons glow. Prayag Murawala, MDI Biological Laboratory and Hannover Medical School. View Media

PanC from M. tuberculosis

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Model of an enzyme, PanC, that is involved in the last step of vitamin B5 biosynthesis in Mycobacterium tuberculosis. PanC is essential for the growth of M. Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Center, PSI View Media

Carbon building blocks (with examples)

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The arrangement of identical molecular components can make a dramatic difference. For example, carbon atoms can be arranged into dull graphite (left) or sparkly diamonds (right). Crabtree + Company View Media

Dimeric association of receptor-type tyrosine-protein phosphatase

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Model of the catalytic portion of an enzyme, receptor-type tyrosine-protein phosphatase from humans. The enzyme consists of two identical protein subunits, shown in blue and green. New York Structural GenomiX Research Consortium, PSI View Media

Enzyme transition states

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The molecule on the left is an electrostatic potential map of the van der Waals surface of the transition state for human purine nucleoside phosphorylase. Vern Schramm, Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University View Media

Ubiquitin-fold modifier 1 from C. elegans

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Solution NMR structure of protein target WR41 (left) from C. elegans. Northeast Structural Genomics Consortium View Media

Supernova bacteria

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Bacteria engineered to act as genetic clocks flash in synchrony. Here, a "supernova" burst in a colony of coupled genetic clocks just after reaching critical cell density. Jeff Hasty, UCSD View Media

Sea urchin embryo 04

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Stereo triplet of a sea urchin embryo stained to reveal actin filaments (orange) and microtubules (blue). George von Dassow, University of Washington View Media

Telomeres on outer edge of nucleus during cell division

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New research shows telomeres moving to the outer edge of the nucleus after cell division, suggesting these caps that protect chromosomes also may play a role in organizing DNA. Laure Crabbe, Jamie Kasuboski and James Fitzpatrick, Salk Institute for Biological Studies View Media

iPS cell facility at the Coriell Institute for Medical Research

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This lab space was designed for work on the induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell collection, part of the NIGMS Human Genetic Cell Repository at the Coriell Institute for Medical Research. Courtney Sill, Coriell Institute for Medical Research View Media

Yeast cells with nuclear envelopes and tubulin

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Yeast cells with nuclear envelopes shown in magenta and tubulin shown in light blue. The nuclear envelope defines the borders of the nucleus, which houses DNA. Alaina Willet, Kathy Gould’s lab, Vanderbilt University. View Media

Bacterial ribosome assembly

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3D reconstructions of two stages in the assembly of the bacterial ribosome created from time-resolved cryo-electron microscopy images. Ribosomes translate genetic instructions into proteins. Joachim Frank, Columbia University. View Media

Measles virus

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A cross section of the measles virus in which six proteins work together to infect cells. The measles virus is extremely infectious; 9 out of 10 people exposed will contract the disease. Amy Wu and Christine Zardecki, RCSB Protein Data Bank. View Media

Drugs enter skin (with labels)

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Drugs enter different layers of skin via intramuscular, subcutaneous, or transdermal delivery methods. See image 2531 for an unlabeled version of this illustration. Crabtree + Company View Media

Lily mitosis 02

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A light microscope image of a cell from the endosperm of an African globe lily (Scadoxus katherinae). This is one frame of a time-lapse sequence that shows cell division in action. Andrew S. Bajer, University of Oregon, Eugene View Media

Enzyme reaction

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Enzymes speed up chemical reactions by reducing the amount of energy needed for the reactions. NIGMS View Media

Hydra 04

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Hydra magnipapillata is an invertebrate animal used as a model organism to study developmental questions, for example the formation of the body axis. Hiroshi Shimizu, National Institute of Genetics in Mishima, Japan View Media

CRISPR Illustration Frame 3

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This illustration shows, in simplified terms, how the CRISPR-Cas9 system can be used as a gene-editing tool. National Institute of General Medical Sciences. View Media

Phagosome in macrophage cell

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A sensor particle being engulfed by a macrophage—an immune cell—and encapsuled in a compartment called a phagosome. The phagosome then fuses with lysosomes—another type of compartment. Yan Yu, Indiana University, Bloomington. View Media

Fruit fly egg chamber

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A fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster) egg chamber with microtubules shown in green and actin filaments shown in red. Vladimir I. Gelfand, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University. View Media

Cell in two stages of division

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This image shows a cell in two stages of division: prometaphase (top) and metaphase (bottom). Lilian Kabeche, Dartmouth View Media

Electrostatic map of the adeno-associated virus

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The new highly efficient parallelized DelPhi software was used to calculate the potential map distribution of an entire virus, the adeno-associated virus, which is made up of more than 484,000 atoms. Emil Alexov, Clemson University View Media

Life of an AIDS virus (with labels)

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HIV is a retrovirus, a type of virus that carries its genetic material not as DNA but as RNA. Crabtree + Company View Media

Fat cells (red) and blood vessels (green)

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A mouse's fat cells (red) are shown surrounded by a network of blood vessels (green). Daniela Malide, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health View Media

Chromosome inside nucleus (with labels)

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The long, stringy DNA that makes up genes is spooled within chromosomes inside the nucleus of a cell. Crabtree + Company View Media

Breast cancer cells change migration phenotypes

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Cancer cells can change their migration phenotype, which includes their shape and the way that they move to invade different tissues. Bo Sun, Oregon State University. View Media

Sea urchin embryo 06

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Stereo triplet of a sea urchin embryo stained to reveal actin filaments (orange) and microtubules (blue). George von Dassow, University of Washington View Media

Telomeres

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The 46 human chromosomes are shown in blue, with the telomeres appearing as white pinpoints. Hesed Padilla-Nash and Thomas Ried, the National Cancer Institute, a part of NIH View Media

E. Coli

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Thomas Deerinck, NCMIR View Media

Natcher Building 09

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NIGMS staff are located in the Natcher Building on the NIH campus. Alisa Machalek, National Institute of General Medical Sciences View Media

Cell-like compartments from frog eggs 2

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Cell-like compartments that spontaneously emerged from scrambled frog eggs, with nuclei (blue) from frog sperm. Endoplasmic reticulum (red) and microtubules (green) are also visible. Xianrui Cheng, Stanford University School of Medicine. View Media