Artery in Gold

What am I looking at?  

This is a section through the monkfish thymus. The nuclei of all cells in the image are blue (1). The muscle tissue that surrounds an artery running through the thymus is gold (2).  

Biology in the Background  

The lymphatic system filters and maintains the correct balance of fluids in the body and plays an important role in delivering immune cells to where they are needed. Throughout the lymphatic system there are lymphoid organs that help produce, train, and maintain different types of cells within the immune system (the cells that help animals fight infection and stay healthy).  

The thymus is one of the primary lymphatic organs and is the main location where T lymphocytes (also called T cells) are produced and trained. T cells are cells of the immune system that help find and fight pathogens and diseased tissue in the body. Proper functioning of the thymus is key to an organism's ability to fight infection and disease and, prevent our immune system from attacking itself.

Arteries, like the one seen here, bring oxygen-rich blood and nutrients to the thymus cells whose proper functioning requires a lot of energy. Images like this one give researchers a better idea of the structure and function of the thymus in fish which could provide deeper insights into how fish fight infections and disease. This in turn could be the foundation for additional research on how our immune systems keep us healthy.  

The artery you see in this image is about 300 micrometers across, roughly 4 times larger than the width of a human hair.  

Technique  

This image was created using confocal microscopy.