National Institute of
Switch to Gallery View
Image and Video Gallery
This is a searchable collection of scientific photos, illustrations, and videos. The images and videos in this gallery are licensed under Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial ShareAlike 3.0. This license lets you remix, tweak, and build upon this work non-commercially, as long as you credit and license your new creations under identical terms.
Cryogenic storage tanks at the Coriell Institute for Medical Research
2722
Established in 1953, the Coriell Institute for Medical Research distributes cell lines and DNA samples to researchers around the world. Courtney Sill, Coriell Institute for Medical Research View Media
Flagellated bacterial cells
7014
Vibrio fischeri (2 mm in length) is the exclusive symbiotic partner of the Hawaiian bobtail squid, Euprymna scolopes. Margaret J. McFall-Ngai, Carnegie Institution for Science/California Institute of Technology, and Edward G. Ruby, California Institute of Technology. View Media
Protein crystals
1060
Structural biologists create crystals of proteins, shown here, as a first step in a process called X-ray crystallography, which can reveal detailed, three-dimensional protein structures. Alex McPherson, University of California, Irvine View Media
Multivesicular bodies containing intralumenal vesicles assemble at the vacuole 1
5769
Collecting and transporting cellular waste and sorting it into recylable and nonrecylable pieces is a complex business in the cell. Matthew West and Greg Odorizzi, University of Colorado View Media
Heart rates time series image
3596
These time series show the heart rates of four different individuals. Madalena Costa and Ary Goldberger, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center View Media
Zinc levels in a plant leaf
3727
Zinc is required for the function of more than 300 enzymes, including those that help regulate gene expression, in various organisms including humans. Suzana Car, Dartmouth College View Media
Lab mice
1069
Many researchers use the mouse (Mus musculus) as a model organism to study mammalian biology. Bill Branson, National Institutes of Health View Media
Culex quinquefasciatus mosquito larvae
6771
Mosquito larvae with genes edited by CRISPR swimming in water. Valentino Gantz, University of California, San Diego. View Media
CRISPR Illustration Frame 1
6465
This illustration shows, in simplified terms, how the CRISPR-Cas9 system can be used as a gene-editing tool. This is the first frame in a series of four. National Institute of General Medical Sciences. View Media
Genetic mosaicism in fruit flies
6983
Fat tissue from the abdomen of a genetically mosaic adult fruit fly. Genetic mosaicism means that the fly has cells with different genotypes even though it formed from a single zygote. Akhila Rajan, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center View Media
Pig trypsin (2)
2413
A crystal of porcine trypsin protein created for X-ray crystallography, which can reveal detailed, three-dimensional protein structures. Alex McPherson, University of California, Irvine View Media
Mouse brain 3
6931
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
Natural nanomachine in action
2336
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
Cell-like compartments from frog eggs 5
6592
Cell-like compartments that spontaneously emerged from scrambled frog eggs, with nuclei (blue) from frog sperm. Endoplasmic reticulum (red) and microtubules (green) are also visible. Xianrui Cheng, Stanford University School of Medicine. View Media
CRISPR Illustration Frame 5
6489
This illustration shows, in simplified terms, how the CRISPR-Cas9 system can be used as a gene-editing tool. This is the fifthframe in a series of five. View Media
Scientists display X-ray diffraction pattern obtained with split X-ray beamline
2384
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
Cells frozen in time
2307
The fledgling field of X-ray microscopy lets researchers look inside whole cells rapidly frozen to capture their actions at that very moment. Here, a yeast cell buds before dividing into two. Carolyn Larabell, University of California, San Francisco, and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory View Media
Cas9 protein involved in the CRISPR gene-editing technology
5816
In the gene-editing tool CRISPR, a small strand of RNA identifies a specific chunk of DNA. Janet Iwasa View Media
Honeybees marked with paint
6756
Researchers doing behavioral experiments with honeybees sometimes use paint or enamel to give individual bees distinguishing marks. Gene Robinson, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. View Media
Cell proliferation in a quail embryo
2808
Image showing that the edge zone (top of image) of the quail embryo shows no proliferating cells (cyan), unlike the interior zone (bottom of image). Non-proliferating cell nuclei are labeled green. Andrés Garcia, Georgia Tech View Media
Zebrafish head vasculature
6934
A zebrafish head with blood vessels shown in purple. Prayag Murawala, MDI Biological Laboratory and Hannover Medical School. View Media
Tiny points of light in a quantum dot
2332
This fingertip-shaped group of lights is a microscopic crystal called a quantum dot. About 10,000 times thinner than a sheet of paper, the dot radiates brilliant colors under ultraviolet light. Sandra Rosenthal and James McBride, Vanderbilt University, and Stephen Pennycook, Oak Ridge National Laboratory View Media
TEM cross-section of C. elegans (roundworm)
5759
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
Space-filling model of a cefotaxime-CCD-1 complex
6767
CCD-1 is an enzyme produced by the bacterium Clostridioides difficile that helps it resist antibiotics. Keith Hodgson, Stanford University. View Media
Microarray 01
1070
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
Protein purification robot in action 01
2369
A robot is transferring 96 purification columns to a vacuum manifold for subsequent purification procedures. The Northeast Collaboratory for Structural Genomics View Media
Hawaiian bobtail squid
7011
An adult Hawaiian bobtail squid, Euprymna scolopes, swimming next to a submerged hand. Margaret J. McFall-Ngai, Carnegie Institution for Science/California Institute of Technology, and Edward G. Ruby, California Institute of Technology. View Media
Cell-like compartments emerging from scrambled frog eggs 2
6588
Cell-like compartments spontaneously emerge from scrambled frog eggs, with nuclei (blue) from frog sperm. Endoplasmic reticulum (red) and microtubules (green) are also visible. Xianrui Cheng, Stanford University School of Medicine. View Media
Cryo-electron microscopy revealing the "wasabi receptor"
3747
The TRPA1 protein is responsible for the burn you feel when you taste a bite of sushi topped with wasabi. Jean-Paul Armache, UCSF View Media
Multivesicular bodies containing intralumenal vesicles assemble at the vacuole 3
5767
Collecting and transporting cellular waste and sorting it into recylable and nonrecylable pieces is a complex business in the cell. Matthew West and Greg Odorizzi, University of Colorado View Media
Rat Hippocampus
3308
This image of the hippocampus was taken with an ultra-widefield high-speed multiphoton laser microscope. Tom Deerinck, NCMIR View Media
Confocal microscopy of perineuronal nets in the brain 1
3741
The photo shows a confocal microscopy image of perineuronal nets (PNNs), which are specialized extracellular matrix (ECM) structures in the brain. Tom Deerinck, National Center for Microscopy and Imaging Research (NCMIR) View Media
HeLa cells
3522
Multiphoton fluorescence image of cultured HeLa cells with a fluorescent protein targeted to the Golgi apparatus (orange), microtubules (green) and counterstained for DNA (cyan). National Center for Microscopy and Imaging Research (NCMIR) View Media
Bacterial cells aggregating above the light organ of the Hawaiian bobtail squid
7018
A light organ (~0.5 mm across) of a juvenile Hawaiian bobtail squid, Euprymna scolopes. Margaret J. McFall-Ngai, Carnegie Institution for Science/California Institute of Technology, and Edward G. Ruby, California Institute of Technology. View Media
Insulin production and fat sensing in fruit flies
6982
Fourteen neurons (magenta) in the adult Drosophila brain produce insulin, and fat tissue sends packets of lipids to the brain via the lipoprotein carriers (green). Akhila Rajan, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center View Media
Electrode probe on mouse Huntington's muscle cell
3479
Using an electrode, researchers apply an electrical pulse onto a piece of muscle tissue affected by Huntington's disease. Grigor Varuzhanyan and Andrew A. Voss, California State Polytechnic University View Media
Math from the heart
3592
Watch a cell ripple toward a beam of light that turns on a movement-related protein. View Media
Activated mast cell surface
2637
A scanning electron microscope image of an activated mast cell. This image illustrates the interesting topography of the cell membrane, which is populated with receptors. Bridget Wilson, University of New Mexico View Media
Antibiotic-surviving bacteria
6802
Colonies of bacteria growing despite high concentrations of antibiotics. These colonies are visible both by eye, as seen on the left, and by bioluminescence imaging, as seen on the right. Paul Stoodley, The Ohio State University. View Media
CRISPR Illustration Frame 3
6487
This illustration shows, in simplified terms, how the CRISPR-Cas9 system can be used as a gene-editing tool. National Institute of General Medical Sciences. View Media
A molecular switch strips transcription factor from DNA
3729
In this video, Rice University scientists used molecular modeling with a mathematical algorithm called AWSEM (for associative memory, water-mediated, structure and energy model) and structural data to Davit Potoyan and Peter Wolynes View Media
Annotated TEM cross-section of C. elegans (roundworm)
5760
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
Snowflake yeast 2
6970
Multicellular yeast called snowflake yeast that researchers created through many generations of directed evolution from unicellular yeast. William Ratcliff, Georgia Institute of Technology. View Media
Dying melanoma cells
6966
Melanoma (skin cancer) cells undergoing programmed cell death, also called apoptosis. This process was triggered by raising the pH of the medium that the cells were growing in. Dylan T. Burnette, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. View Media
Protein folding video
3391
Proteins are long chains of amino acids. Each protein has a unique amino acid sequence. It is still a mystery how a protein folds into the proper shape based on its sequence. Theoretical and Computational Biophysics Group View Media
Yeast cells entering mitosis
6791
Yeast cells entering mitosis, also known as cell division. The green and magenta dots are two proteins that play important roles in mitosis. They show where the cells will split. Alaina Willet, Kathy Gould’s lab, Vanderbilt University. View Media
NMR spectrometer
2371
This photo shows a Varian Unity Inova 900 MHz, 21.1 T standard bore magnet Nuclear Magnetic Resonnance (NMR) spectrometer. Center for Eukaryotic Structural Genomics View Media
Soft X-ray tomography of a pancreatic beta cell
6605
A color-coded, 3D model of a rat pancreatic β cell. This type of cell produces insulin, a hormone that helps regulate blood sugar. Carolyn Larabell, University of California, San Francisco. View Media
Modeling disease spread
2322
What looks like a Native American dream catcher is really a network of social interactions within a community. Stephen Eubank, University of Virginia Biocomplexity Institute (formerly Virginia Bioinformatics Institute) View Media
