Boat World News

THIS DORSAL VIEW OF A ZEBRAFISH – PROVIDING AN INSIDE LOOK OF THE CREATURE’S SKELETON AND LYMPHATIC VESSELS – HAS WON THE 46TH ANNUAL NIKON SMALL WORLD PHOTOMICROGRAPHY COMPETITION IN NEW YORK.

Daniel Castranova, assisted by Bakary Samasa while working in the lab of Dr. Brant Weinstein at the National Institutes of Health in Maryland, took the top prize for his immaculate photo of a juvenile zebrafish. The image was taken using confocal microscopy and image-stacking.

The image is particularly significant because it was taken as part of an imaging effort that helped Castranova’s team make a groundbreaking discovery – zebrafish have lymphatic vessels inside their skull that were previously thought to occur only in mammals.

Their occurrence in fish, a much easier subject to raise, experiment with, and photograph, could expedite and revolutionise research related to treatments for diseases that occur in the human brain, including cancer and Alzheimer’s.

Castranova stitched together more than 350 individual images to create this single visual. The image was acquired using a spinning disk confocal, merging together maximum intensity projections of three separate image Z stacks to generate the final reconstructed image.

“The image is beautiful, but also shows how powerful the zebrafish can be as a model for the development of lymphatic vessels,” says Castranova. “Until now, we thought this type of lymphatic system associated with the nervous system only occurred in mammals.”

Adds Eric Flem, communications manager, Nikon Instruments: “For 46 years the Nikon Small World competition’s goal has been to share microscopic imagery that visually blends art and science for the general public. As imaging techniques and technologies become more advanced, we are proud to showcase imagery that this blend of research, creativity, imaging technology and expertise can bring to scientific discovery. This year’s first place winner is a stunning example.”

Nikon Small World recognized 88 photos out of thousands of entries from scientists and artists across the globe.

For more information visit www.nikonsmallworld.com

Nikon Small World recognized 88 photos out of thousands of entries from scientists and artists across the globe.

The image of the zebrafish was taken using confocal microscopy and image-stacking. Top is a ventral view of an immature water boatman, by the UK’S Anne Algar. Above is a silica cell wall of a marine diatom by Germany’s Jan Michels.