National Institute of
Switch to Gallery View
Image and Video Gallery
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.
Purkinje cells are one of the main cell types in the brain
3637
This image captures Purkinje cells (red), one of the main types of nerve cell found in the brain. Yinghua Ma and Timothy Vartanian, Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y. View Media
Blood clots show their flex
2450
Blood clots stop bleeding, but they also can cause heart attacks and strokes. Eric Lee, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign View Media
Central dogma, illustrated (with labels and numbers for stages)
2549
DNA encodes RNA, which encodes protein. DNA is transcribed to make messenger RNA (mRNA). The mRNA sequence (dark red strand) is complementary to the DNA sequence (blue strand). Crabtree + Company View Media
Fruit fly nurse cells transporting their contents during egg development
6754
In many animals, the egg cell develops alongside sister cells. Adam C. Martin, Massachusetts Institute of Technology. View Media
Human blood cells with Borrelia hermsii, a bacterium that causes relapsing fever
3586
Relapsing fever is caused by a bacterium and transmitted by certain soft-bodied ticks or body lice. The disease is seldom fatal in humans, but it can be very serious and prolonged. NIAID View Media
Zebrafish larva
5881
You are face to face with a 6-day-old zebrafish larva. What look like eyes will become nostrils, and the bulges on either side will become eyes. Oscar Ruiz and George Eisenhoffer, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston View Media
Protein map
2423
Network diagram showing a map of protein-protein interactions in a yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) cell. This cluster includes 78 percent of the proteins in the yeast proteome. Hawoong Jeong, KAIST, Korea View Media
Cellular polarity
2309
As an egg cell develops, a process called polarization controls what parts ultimately become the embryo's head and tail. This picture shows an egg of the fruit fly Drosophila. Wu-Min Deng, Florida State University View Media
Human opioid receptor structure superimposed on poppy
3314
Opioid receptors on the surfaces of brain cells are involved in pleasure, pain, addiction, depression, psychosis, and other conditions. Raymond Stevens, The Scripps Research Institute View Media
Cytoskeleton
1272
The three fibers of the cytoskeleton--microtubules in blue, intermediate filaments in red, and actin in green--play countless roles in the cell. Judith Stoffer View Media
Bicycling cell
1337
A humorous treatment of the concept of a cycling cell. Judith Stoffer View Media
Seeing signaling protein activation in cells 01
2451
Cdc42, a member of the Rho family of small guanosine triphosphatase (GTPase) proteins, regulates multiple cell functions, including motility, proliferation, apoptosis, and cell morphology. Klaus Hahn, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill Medical School View Media
Mouse brain slice showing nerve cells
6901
A 20-µm thick section of mouse midbrain. The nerve cells are transparent and weren’t stained. Michael Shribak, Marine Biological Laboratory/University of Chicago. View Media
Mouse mammary cells lacking anti-cancer protein
3432
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
Molecular model of freshly made Rous sarcoma virus (RSV)
3771
Viruses have been the foes of animals and other organisms for time immemorial. Boon Chong Goh, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign View Media
Bacteriophage P22 capsid, detail
5875
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
Multicolor STORM
2325
In 2006, scientists developed an optical microscopy technique enabling them to clearly see individual molecules within cells. In 2007, they took the technique, abbreviated STORM, a step further. Xiaowei Zhuang, Harvard University View Media
Cryo-ET cell cross-section visualizing insulin vesicles
6607
On the left, a cross-section slice of a rat pancreas cell captured using cryo-electron tomography (cryo-ET). On the right, a color-coded, 3D version of the image highlighting cell structures. Xianjun Zhang, University of Southern California. View Media
X-ray diffraction pattern from a crystallized cefotaxime-CCD-1 complex
6765
CCD-1 is an enzyme produced by the bacterium Clostridioides difficile that helps it resist antibiotics. Keith Hodgson, Stanford University. View Media
Dolly the sheep
2690
Scientists in Scotland were the first to clone an animal, this sheep named Dolly. She later gave birth to Bonnie, the lamb next to her. View Media
Dicer generates microRNAs (with labels)
2557
The enzyme Dicer generates microRNAs by chopping larger RNA molecules into tiny Velcro®-like pieces. MicroRNAs stick to mRNA molecules and prevent the mRNAs from being made into proteins. Crabtree + Company View Media
Microtubules in hippocampal neurons
6890
Microtubules (magenta) in neurons of the hippocampus, a part of the brain involved in learning and memory. Microtubules are strong, hollow fibers that provide structural support to cells. Melike Lakadamyali, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. View Media
Stress Response in Cells
6570
Two highly stressed osteosarcoma cells are shown with a set of green droplet-like structures followed by a second set of magenta droplets. Julia F. Riley and Carlos A. Castañeda, Syracuse University View Media
Electrostatic map of the adeno-associated virus
3374
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
Interphase in Xenopus frog cells
3443
These images show frog cells in interphase. The cells are Xenopus XL177 cells, which are derived from tadpole epithelial cells. The microtubules are green and the chromosomes are blue. Claire Walczak, who took them while working as a postdoc in the laboratory of Timothy Mitchison. View Media
G switch (with labels)
2537
The G switch allows our bodies to respond rapidly to hormones. G proteins act like relay batons to pass messages from circulating hormones into cells. Crabtree + Company View Media
Mouse brain 1
6929
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
A Growing Bacterial Biofilm
5825
A growing Vibrio cholerae (cholera) biofilm. Cholera bacteria form colonies called biofilms that enable them to resist antibiotic therapy within the body and other challenges to their growth. Jing Yan, Ph.D., and Bonnie Bassler, Ph.D., Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ. View Media
Ubiquitin-fold modifier 1 from C. elegans
2388
Solution NMR structure of protein target WR41 (left) from C. elegans. Northeast Structural Genomics Consortium View Media
Yeast cells with accumulated cell wall material
6797
Yeast cells that abnormally accumulate cell wall material (blue) at their ends and, when preparing to divide, in their middles. This image was captured using wide-field microscopy with deconvolution. Alaina Willet, Kathy Gould’s lab, Vanderbilt University. View Media
Lily mitosis 10
1010
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
Hen egg lysozyme (1)
2396
Crystals of hen egg lysozyme protein created for X-ray crystallography, which can reveal detailed, three-dimensional protein structures. Alex McPherson, University of California, Irvine View Media
X-ray crystallography (with labels)
2512
X-ray crystallography allows researchers to see structures too small to be seen by even the most powerful microscopes. Crabtree + Company View Media
From DNA to Protein (labeled)
2510
The genetic code in DNA is transcribed into RNA, which is translated into proteins with specific sequences. Crabtree + Company View Media
Fruit fly ovarioles
6810
Three fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster) ovarioles (yellow, blue, and magenta) with egg cells visible inside them. Ovarioles are tubes in the reproductive systems of female insects. Vladimir I. Gelfand, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University. View Media
Peripheral nerve cell derived from ES cells
3264
A peripheral nerve cell made from human embryonic stem cell-derived neural crest stem cells. Stephen Dalton, University of Georgia View Media
Plastic-eating enzymes
7000
PETase enzyme degrades polyester plastic (polyethylene terephthalate, or PET) into monohydroxyethyl terephthalate (MHET). Amy Wu and Christine Zardecki, RCSB Protein Data Bank. View Media
Vesicle traffic
1283
This illustration shows vesicle traffic inside a cell. Judith Stoffer View Media
Fly cells
3594
If a picture is worth a thousand words, what's a movie worth? Denise Montell, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine View Media
Color coding of the Drosophila brain - black background
5868
This image results from a research project to visualize which regions of the adult fruit fly (Drosophila) brain derive from each neural stem cell. Yong Wan from Charles Hansen’s lab, University of Utah. Data preparation and visualization by Masayoshi Ito in the lab of Kei Ito, University of Tokyo. View Media
CRISPR Illustration Frame 1
6465
This illustration shows, in simplified terms, how the CRISPR-Cas9 system can be used as a gene-editing tool. This is the first frame in a series of four. National Institute of General Medical Sciences. View Media
Nuclear Lamina – Three Views
6573
Three views of the entire nuclear lamina of a HeLa cell produced by tilted light sheet 3D single-molecule super-resolution imaging using a platform termed TILT3D. Anna-Karin Gustavsson, Ph.D. View Media
A panorama view of cells
5761
This photograph shows a panoramic view of HeLa cells, a cell line many researchers use to study a large variety of important research questions. Tom Deerinck, National Center for Microscopy and Imaging Research View Media
See how immune cell acid destroys bacterial proteins
6602
This animation shows the effect of exposure to hypochlorous acid, which is found in certain types of immune cells, on bacterial proteins. American Chemistry Council View Media
Tex protein
2338
Model of a member from the Tex protein family, which is implicated in transcriptional regulation and highly conserved in eukaryotes and prokaryotes. New York Structural GenomiX Research Consortium, PSI View Media
Neural circuits in worms similar to those in humans
3252
Green and yellow fluorescence mark the processes and cell bodies of some C. elegans neurons. Shawn Xu, University of Michigan View Media
Two-headed Xenopus laevis tadpole
2755
Xenopus laevis, the African clawed frog, has long been used as a research organism for studying embryonic development. Michael Klymkowsky, University of Colorado, Boulder View Media
Anti-tumor drug ecteinascidin 743 (ET-743), structure without hydrogens 01
2794
Ecteinascidin 743 (ET-743, brand name Yondelis), was discovered and isolated from a sea squirt, Ecteinascidia turbinata, by NIGMS grantee Kenneth Rinehart at the University of Illinois. Timothy Jamison, Massachusetts Institute of Technology View Media
Planting roots
2329
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
