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Crab nerve cell
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Neuron from a crab showing the cell body (bottom), axon (rope-like extension), and growth cone (top right). Tina Weatherby Carvalho, University of Hawaii at Manoa View Media
Glowing bacteria make a pretty postcard
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This tropical scene, reminiscent of a postcard from Key West, is actually a petri dish containing an artistic arrangement of genetically engineered bacteria. Nathan C. Shaner, The Scintillon Institute View Media
Mitosis and meiosis compared
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Meiosis is used to make sperm and egg cells. During meiosis, a cell's chromosomes are copied once, but the cell divides twice. Judith Stoffer View Media
Assembly of the HIV capsid
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The HIV capsid is a pear-shaped structure that is made of proteins the virus needs to mature and become infective. John Grime and Gregory Voth, The University of Chicago View Media
Natcher Building 04
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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
Anglerfish ovary cross-section
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This image captures the spiral-shaped ovary of an anglerfish in cross-section. Once matured, these eggs will be released in a gelatinous, floating mass. James E. Hayden, The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, Pa. View Media
Human liver cell (hepatocyte)
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Hepatocytes, like the one shown here, are the most abundant type of cell in the human liver. Donna Beer Stolz, University of Pittsburgh View Media
Annotated TEM cross-section of C. elegans (roundworm)
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The worm Caenorhabditis elegans is a popular laboratory animal because its small size and fairly simple body make it easy to study. Piali Sengupta, Brandeis University View Media
Anti-tumor drug ecteinascidin 743 (ET-743), structure without hydrogens 01
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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
Crawling cell
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A crawling cell with DNA shown in blue and actin filaments, which are a major component of the cytoskeleton, visible in pink. Actin filaments help enable cells to crawl. Dylan T. Burnette, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. View Media
Heart muscle with reprogrammed skin cells
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Skins cells were reprogrammed into heart muscle cells. The cells highlighted in green are remaining skin cells. Red indicates a protein that is unique to heart muscle. Deepak Srivastava, Gladstone Institute of Cardiovascular Disease, via CIRM View Media
Life in balance
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Mitosis creates cells, and apoptosis kills them. The processes often work together to keep us healthy. Judith Stoffer View Media
Axolotls showing nervous system components
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Axolotls—a type of salamander—that have been genetically modified so that various parts of their nervous systems glow purple and green. Prayag Murawala, MDI Biological Laboratory and Hannover Medical School. View Media
Misfolded proteins in mitochondria, 3-D video
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Three-dimensional image of misfolded proteins (green) within mitochondria (red). Related to image 5878. Rong Li, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Whiting School of Engineering, Johns Hopkins University View Media
Cell division and cell death
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Two cells over a 2-hour period. The one on the bottom left goes through programmed cell death, also known as apoptosis. The one on the top right goes through cell division, also called mitosis. Dylan T. Burnette, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. View Media
Mouse brain 3
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Various views of 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
Cone snail shell
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A shell from the venomous cone snail Conus omaria, which lives in the Pacific and Indian oceans and eats other snails. Kerry Matz, University of Utah View Media
Transmission electron microscopy of myelinated axons with ECM between the axons
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The extracellular matrix (ECM) is most prevalent in connective tissues but also is present between the stems (axons) of nerve cells, as shown here. Tom Deerinck, National Center for Microscopy and Imaging Research (NCMIR) View Media
Trp_RS - tryptophanyl tRNA-synthetase family of enzymes
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This image represents the structure of TrpRS, a novel member of the tryptophanyl tRNA-synthetase family of enzymes. 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
Anti-tumor drug ecteinascidin 743 (ET-743) with hydrogens 04
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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
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
Fruit fly ovarioles
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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
Nociceptin/orphanin FQ peptide opioid receptor
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The receptor is shown bound to an antagonist, compound-24 Raymond Stevens, The Scripps Research Institute View Media
Self-organizing proteins
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Under the microscope, an E. coli cell lights up like a fireball. Each bright dot marks a surface protein that tells the bacteria to move toward or away from nearby food and toxins. View Media
Brains of sleep-deprived and well-rested fruit flies
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On top, the brain of a sleep-deprived fly glows orange because of Bruchpilot, a communication protein between brain cells. These bright orange brain areas are associated with learning. Chiara Cirelli, University of Wisconsin-Madison View Media
RNA interference (with labels)
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RNA interference or RNAi is a gene-silencing process in which double-stranded RNAs trigger the destruction of specific RNAs. Crabtree + Company View Media
Zebrafish embryo
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A zebrafish embryo showing its natural colors. Zebrafish have see-through eggs and embryos, making them ideal research organisms for studying the earliest stages of development. Michael Shribak, Marine Biological Laboratory/University of Chicago. View Media
Multinucleated cancer cell
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A cancer cell with three nuclei, shown in turquoise. The abnormal number of nuclei indicates that the cell failed to go through cell division, probably more than once. Dylan T. Burnette, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. View Media
Natcher Building 02
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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
Natural nanomachine in action
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Using a supercomputer to simulate the movement of atoms in a ribosome, researchers looked into the core of this protein-making nanomachine and took snapshots. Kevin Sanbonmatsu, Los Alamos National Laboratory View Media
Mapping metabolic activity
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Like a map showing heavily traveled roads, this mathematical model of metabolic activity inside an E. coli cell shows the busiest pathway in white. Albert-László Barabási, University of Notre Dame View Media
Microarray 01
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Microarrays, also called gene chips, are tools that let scientists track the activity of hundreds or thousands of genes simultaneously. Maggie Werner-Washburne, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque View Media
Hydra 06
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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
Repairing DNA
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Like a watch wrapped around a wrist, a special enzyme encircles the double helix to repair a broken strand of DNA. Tom Ellenberger, Washington University School of Medicine View Media
Nucleotides make up DNA
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DNA consists of two long, twisted chains made up of nucleotides. Each nucleotide contains one base, one phosphate molecule, and the sugar molecule deoxyribose. Crabtree + Company View Media
Himastatin, 360-degree view
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A 360-degree view of the molecule himastatin, which was first isolated from the bacterium Streptomyces himastatinicus. Himastatin shows antibiotic activity. Mohammad Movassaghi, Massachusetts Institute of Technology. View Media
Lily mitosis 05
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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
ATP synthase (with labels)
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The world's smallest motor, ATP synthase, generates energy for the cell. See image 2517 for an unlabeled version of this illustration. Crabtree + Company View Media
Electrostatic map of human spermine synthase
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From PDB entry 3c6k, Crystal structure of human spermine synthase in complex with spermidine and 5-methylthioadenosine. Emil Alexov, Clemson University View Media
Yeast cells responding to a glucose shortage
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These yeast cells were exposed to a glucose (sugar) shortage. Mike Henne, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. View Media
Leptospira bacteria
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Leptospira, shown here in green, is a type (genus) of elongated, spiral-shaped bacteria. Infection can cause Weil's disease, a kind of jaundice, in humans. Tina Weatherby Carvalho, University of Hawaii at Manoa View Media
Research mentor and student
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A research mentor (Lori Eidson) and student (Nina Waldron, on the microscope) were 2009 members of the BRAIN (Behavioral Research Advancements In Neuroscience) program at Georgia State University in A Elizabeth Weaver, Georgia State University View Media
Kinases
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Kinases are enzymes that add phosphate groups (red-yellow structures) to proteins (green), assigning the proteins a code. Crabtree + Company View Media
Vimentin in a quail embryo
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Video of high-resolution confocal images depicting vimentin immunofluorescence (green) and nuclei (blue) at the edge of a quail embryo yolk. Andrés Garcia, Georgia Tech View Media
C. elegans trapped by carnivorous fungus
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Real-time footage of Caenorhabditis elegans, a tiny roundworm, trapped by a carnivorous fungus, Arthrobotrys dactyloides. Michael Shribak, Marine Biological Laboratory/University of Chicago. View Media
Bottles of warfarin
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In 2007, the FDA modified warfarin's label to indicate that genetic makeup may affect patient response to the drug. The widely used blood thinner is sold under the brand name Coumadin®. Alisa Machalek, NIGMS/NIH View Media
Scientists display X-ray diffraction pattern obtained with split X-ray beamline
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Scientists from Argonne National Laboratory's Advanced Photon Source (APS) display the first X-ray diffraction pattern obtained from a protein crystal using a split X-ray beam, the first of its kind a GM/CA Collaborative Access Team View Media
Movie of in vitro assembly of a cell-signaling pathway
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T cells are white blood cells that are important in defending the body against bacteria, viruses and other pathogens. Xiaolei Su, HHMI Whitman Center of the Marine Biological Laboratory View Media
