A striking red, blue and green microscopic image of a small portion of rat brain, taken by University of California, San Diego School of Medicine researcher Thomas Deerinck, was awarded first place in the recent 28thAnnual Nikon International Small World Photomicrography Competition.
Selected from among 800 images submitted by 300 entrants from throughout the world, Deerinck's winning image brilliantly displays a tiny portion of rat cerebellum that highlights calcium channels in neurons and the organization of brain cells called glia.
Photomicrography, the art of capturing photographic images through a microscope, has been in existence for more than a century. This type of photography has undergone a renaissance in recent years with the advent of powerful new staining methods and digital microscopes. Scientists use different brilliantly colored fluorescent dyes to reveal the complex organization of the brain.
Deerinck explained that his winning image was derived from ongoing brain research efforts at UCSD's National Center for Microscopy and Imaging Research (NCMIR), where he and his colleagues use high-resolution microscopy to map the distribution of important brain proteins. With this information, neuroscientists will have a better understanding of the structure and function of the brain, which researchers use to study the causes and develop potential treatment for a wide range of illnesses such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases.
Supervisor of the NCMIR biological research staff, Deerinck conducts biological experiments and develops novel approaches to aid in light and electron microscopic bioimaging. Although some of his past photomicrography has won awards and been featured on the covers of scientific journals, this is the first time that he has entered the prestigious international Nikon competition.
The top 12 winning images in the contest are featured in Nikon's annual four-color calendar, displayed on their website www.nikonusa.com, and will be shown in a national museum tour in 2003. Deerinck's first place award included $5,000 in Nikon equipment and travel.
Additional Background:
The Contest Submissions were evaluated on originality, informational content, technical proficiency and visual impact. Second prize, a multi-colored illustration of a polyethylene folio, was won by Zdenka Jenikova of the Czech Republic. Third prize, the fan-shape of marine diatom, was won by Wim van Egmond of The Netherlands.
The National Center for Microscopy and Imaging Research (NCMIR), where Deerinck is a research associate, is a federally funded research facility specializing in the development of technologies for improving the understanding of biological structure and function relationships spanning the dimensional range from 1nm3to 50µm3. Heavily involved in computational biology and information technology, the NCMIR plays a key role in the Biomedical Informatics Research Network (BIRN) initiative; is associated with the Center for Research on Biological Structure (CRBS) at UCSD, and is a satellite site of both the California Institute of Telecommunications and Information Technology (Cal-IT2) and the San Diego Supercomputer Center (SDSC).