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.
Bacterial cells aggregated above a light-organ pore of the Hawaiian bobtail squid
7019
The beating of cilia on the outside of the Hawaiian bobtail squid’s light organ concentrates Vibrio fischeri cells (green) present in the seawater into aggregates near the pore-containing tis Margaret J. McFall-Ngai, Carnegie Institution for Science/California Institute of Technology, and Edward G. Ruby, California Institute of Technology. View Media
Crystals of CCD-1 in complex with cefotaxime
6764
CCD-1 is an enzyme produced by the bacterium Clostridioides difficile that helps it resist antibiotics. Keith Hodgson, Stanford University. View Media
CRISPR surveillance complex
6352
This image shows how the CRISPR surveillance complex is disabled by two copies of anti-CRISPR protein AcrF1 (red) and one AcrF2 (light green). NRAMM National Resource for Automated Molecular Microscopy http://nramm.nysbc.org/nramm-images/ Source: Bridget Carragher View Media
Animal cell
1274
A typical animal cell, sliced open to reveal a cross-section of organelles. Judith Stoffer View Media
Zebrafish embryo
6897
A zebrafish embryo showing its natural colors. Zebrafish have see-through eggs and embryos, making them ideal research organisms for studying the earliest stages of development. Michael Shribak, Marine Biological Laboratory/University of Chicago. View Media
Mitochondria from rat heart muscle cell_2
3664
These mitochondria (brown) are from the heart muscle cell of a rat. Mitochondria have an inner membrane that folds in many places (and that appears here as striations). National Center for Microscopy and Imaging Research View Media
Central dogma, illustrated
2547
DNA encodes RNA, which encodes protein. DNA is transcribed to make messenger RNA (mRNA). The mRNA sequence (dark red strand) is complementary to the DNA sequence (blue strand). Crabtree + Company View Media
Protein purification facility
2376
The Center for Eukaryotic Structural Genomics protein purification facility is responsible for purifying all recombinant proteins produced by the center. Center for Eukaryotic Structural Genomics View Media
Pollen grains: male germ cells in plants and a cause of seasonal allergies
3609
Those of us who get sneezy and itchy-eyed every spring or fall may have pollen grains, like those shown here, to blame. Edna, Gil, and Amit Cukierman, Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, Pa. 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
Fruitful dyes
2317
These colorful, computer-generated ribbons show the backbone of a molecule that glows a fluorescent red. Roger Y. Tsien, University of California, San Diego View Media
Mouse colon with gut bacteria
3566
A section of mouse colon with gut bacteria (center, in green) residing within a protective pocket. Sarkis K. Mazmanian, California Institute of Technology View Media
Ribonuclease P structure
3660
Ribbon diagram showing the structure of Ribonuclease P with tRNA. PDB entry 3Q1Q, molecular modeling by Fred Friedman, NIGMS View Media
Cone snail shell
2576
A shell from the venomous cone snail Conus omaria, which lives in the Pacific and Indian oceans and eats other snails. Kerry Matz, University of Utah 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
Scanning electron microscopy of collagen fibers
3735
This image shows collagen, a fibrous protein that's the main component of the extracellular matrix (ECM). Collagen is a strong, ropelike molecule that forms stretch-resistant fibers. Tom Deerinck, National Center for Microscopy and Imaging Research (NCMIR) View Media
Microtubules and tau aggregates
6892
Microtubules (magenta) and tau protein (light blue) in a cell model of tauopathy. Melike Lakadamyali, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. View Media
Sea urchin embryo 05
1051
Stereo triplet of a sea urchin embryo stained to reveal actin filaments (orange) and microtubules (blue). George von Dassow, University of Washington View Media
Color coding of the Drosophila brain - black background
5868
This image results from a research project to visualize which regions of the adult fruit fly (Drosophila) brain derive from each neural stem cell. Yong Wan from Charles Hansen’s lab, University of Utah. Data preparation and visualization by Masayoshi Ito in the lab of Kei Ito, University of Tokyo. View Media
Transient receptor potential channel TRPV5
6577
A 3D reconstruction of a transient receptor potential channel called TRPV5 that was created based on cryo-electron microscopy images. Vera Moiseenkova-Bell, University of Pennsylvania. View Media
Mapping metabolic activity
2319
Like a map showing heavily traveled roads, this mathematical model of metabolic activity inside an E. coli cell shows the busiest pathway in white. Albert-László Barabási, University of Notre Dame View Media
Computer model of cell membrane
2636
A computer model of the cell membrane, where the plasma membrane is red, endoplasmic reticulum is yellow, and mitochondria are blue. Bridget Wilson, University of New Mexico View Media
Sphingolipid S1P1 receptor
3362
The receptor is shown bound to an antagonist, ML056. Raymond Stevens, The Scripps Research Institute View Media
Cryo-ET cross-section of the Golgi apparatus
6606
On the left, a cross-section slice of a rat pancreas cell captured using cryo-electron tomography (cryo-ET). On the right, a 3D, color-coded version of the image highlighting cell structures. Xianjun Zhang, University of Southern California. View Media
A panorama view of cells
5761
This photograph shows a panoramic view of HeLa cells, a cell line many researchers use to study a large variety of important research questions. Tom Deerinck, National Center for Microscopy and Imaging Research View Media
Bacteria working to eat
2304
Gram-negative bacteria perform molecular acrobatics just to eat. Because they're encased by two membranes, they must haul nutrients across both. Emad Tajkhorshid, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign View Media
NCMIR mouse tail
3395
Stained cross section of a mouse tail. Tom Deerinck, National Center for Microscopy and Imaging Research (NCMIR) View Media
Snowflake yeast 3
6971
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
Snowflake DNA origami
3724
An atomic force microscopy image shows DNA folded into an intricate, computer-designed structure. The image is featured on Biomedical Beat blog post Cool Images: A Holiday-Themed Collection. Hao Yan, Arizona State University View Media
Atomic Structure of Poppy Enzyme
3422
The atomic structure of the morphine biosynthetic enzyme salutaridine reductase bound to the cofactor NADPH. The substrate salutaridine is shown entering the active site. Judy Coyle, Donald Danforth Plant Science Center View Media
Lily mitosis 13
1019
A light microscope image of cells from the endosperm of an African globe lily (Scadoxus katherinae). This is one frame of a time-lapse sequence that shows cell division in action. Andrew S. Bajer, University of Oregon, Eugene View Media
Dicty fruit
2684
Dictyostelium discoideum is a microscopic amoeba. A group of 100,000 form a mound as big as a grain of sand. Featured in The New Genetics. View Media
Partial Model of a Cilium’s Doublet Microtubule
6548
Cilia (cilium in singular) are complex molecular machines found on many of our cells. Brown Lab, Harvard Medical School and Veronica Falconieri Hays. 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
Kinases
2534
Kinases are enzymes that add phosphate groups (red-yellow structures) to proteins (green), assigning the proteins a code. Crabtree + Company View Media
Fungal lipase (1)
2395
Crystals of fungal lipase protein created for X-ray crystallography, which can reveal detailed, three-dimensional protein structures. Alex McPherson, University of California, Irvine View Media
Hydra 03
2439
Hydra magnipapillata is an invertebrate animal used as a model organism to study developmental questions, for example the formation of the body axis. Hiroshi Shimizu, National Institute of Genetics in Mishima, Japan View Media
Fruit fly egg ooplasmic streaming
6809
Two fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster) egg cells, one on each side of the central black line. Vladimir I. Gelfand, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University. View Media
Natcher Building 07
1087
NIGMS staff are located in the Natcher Building on the NIH campus. Alisa Machalek, National Institute of General Medical Sciences View Media
Multinucleated cancer cell
6967
A cancer cell with three nuclei, shown in turquoise. The abnormal number of nuclei indicates that the cell failed to go through cell division, probably more than once. Dylan T. Burnette, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. View Media
Diversity oriented synthesis: generating skeletal diversity using folding processes
3327
This 1 1/2-minute video animation was produced for chemical biologist Stuart Schreiber's lab page. The animation shows how diverse chemical structures can be produced in the lab. Eric Keller View Media
Magnetic Janus particle activating a T cell
6800
A Janus particle being used to activate a T cell, a type of immune cell. Yan Yu, Indiana University, Bloomington. View Media
Scanning electron microscopy of the ECM on the surface of a calf muscle
3739
This image shows the extracellular matrix (ECM) on the surface of a soleus (lower calf) muscle in light brown and blood vessels in pink. Tom Deerinck, National Center for Microscopy and Imaging Research (NCMIR) View Media
Sleep and the fly brain
2596
In the top snapshots, the brain of a sleep-deprived fruit fly glows orange, marking high concentrations of a synaptic protein called Bruchpilot (BRP) involved in communication between neurons. Chiara Cirelli, University of Wisconsin-Madison View Media
NCMIR Intestine-1
3389
The small intestine is where most of our nutrients from the food we eat are absorbed into the bloodstream. Tom Deerinck, National Center for Microscopy and Imaging Research (NCMIR) View Media
Retinal pigment epithelium derived from human ES cells
3286
This color-enhanced image is a scanning electron microscope image of retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells derived from human embryonic stem cells. David Hinton lab, University of Southern California, via CIRM View Media
Crane fly spermatocyte undergoing meiosis
6898
A crane fly spermatocyte during metaphase of meiosis-I, a step in the production of sperm. Michael Shribak, Marine Biological Laboratory/University of Chicago. View Media
