Brain Development and the Power of Fluorescence Imaging : Findings Based on a Zebrafish Study

✍ Scribed by Rachel Underwood

• Publisher: Wiley (John Wiley & Sons)
• Year: 2006
• Weight: 499 KB
• Volume: 8
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1439-4243
• DOI: 10.1002/imic.200790071

✦ Synopsis

Brain Development and the Power of Fluorescence Imaging

Findings Based on a Zebrafish Study

The human brain is an organ of extraordinary complexity. Understanding how the brain develops is not only intrinsically interesting, but also has great significance in understanding, and possibly treating, neurological disorders and CNS injury. At the MRC Centre for Developmental Neurobiology, King's College, London, Dr. Steffen Scholpp, working with Professor Andrew Lumsden, is interested in the early development of the thalamus. In humans, this is the size and shape of an egg and is located in the centre of the brain.

translucent. Developmental changes can be observed in detail in the living embryo using high-resolution light microscopy. The MRC zebrafish group use a Nikon Digital Eclipse C1 laser scanning confocal microscope equipped with an acousto optic modulator (AOM). "The nature of our work with living zebrafish embryos demands that we have a microscope system that is available to us at all times," Dr. Scholpp continues. "While we can book time on a large shared departmental confocal microscope, this is not always practical or convenient. The C1 is a compact system that meets our needs. It is very easy to use and does not require a dedicated technician. It is also modular, making it easy to add further imaging equipment as required.