One trick on the confocal microscope is to use a larger pinhole so that a greater thickness of the section is captured in the image. Images acquired this way are comparable to a bunch of thin sections that are then merged into a “z-stack” except that some of the tissue is out of focus, giving rise to the blurry “rushing water” look that you see here.
The third ventricle. Serious stuff.
An ultrasaturated look at the hippocampal fissure. Usually I’m not a fan of oversaturated neuro pix because strong signal is blown out and detail is lost. The converse, however, is that the faint signal become more visible and detail is gained. Need to work on some high dynamic range solution which would give the best of both worlds.
If GFAP was a catcher’s mitt then, uhh, cell nuclei would be…
Dorsal third ventricle. Seriousness continues. This thing could eat you.
Check out the highest resolution version of this and imagine falling in. You’re dead.
Not quite as impressive but illustrates something I’ve observed periodically in mice but never in rats: newborn neurons (in red) in the molecular layer.
An argument against the conventional red, green and blue color scheme of histological imagery.
An argument for the conventional red, green and blue color scheme of histological imagery. (Check out all the radial cell processes extending through the lower blade of the dentate gyrus. Red = thymidine kinase)
The blood vessel from the above image, bigger.
A transverse cut through two blood vessels (in contrast to the parallel cut, above). Where’s Waldo fans: find the catcher’s mitt cell in this picture.
More images on Flickr.
Hi, have you heard of Neuralstem Inc.’s depression medication? It works by stimulation neurogenesis in the hippocampus: http://www.neuralstem.com/pharmaceuticals-for-depression. Was wondering what you thought of this drug.
Never heard of it. Are there any publications on it, linking it to neurogenesis and behavior?
Some of the most beuatiful artistry I have seen come from nature. Thanks for these great images! And to James, is that a prescription only med?