Neuronal Galaxies Meet
This may look like a highway system between two galaxies in outer space, but in fact, this highway system connects something infinitely smaller. What we see here is two neural networks (groups of communicating neurons) separated within a microfluidic device. In the center of the image, you can see axons from one collection of neurons extending through tunnels to another group of neurons, allowing networks to form.
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DownloadNeuronal Galaxies Meet
This may look like a highway system between two galaxies in outer space, but in fact, this highway system connects something infinitely smaller. What we see here is two neural networks (groups of communicating neurons) separated within a microfluidic device. In the center of the image, you can see axons from one collection of neurons extending through tunnels to another group of neurons, allowing networks to form.
What am I looking at?
This image shows two different populations of neurons, one in green (1) and the other in orange (2), taken from the brain of a mouse embryo and grown in a lab. These two populations were grown in a specialized device called a microfluidic chamber. This device keeps the two populations separate, except for tiny channels that allow the neurons to send axons through to the other side (3).
Biology in the background
Neurons communicate using electricity and chemistry. Most neurons are composed of three main parts, each of which plays a special role in this communication. First is the cell body, which is the manufacturing and processing center of the cell. Second are the axons, which send signals to other cells using special chemicals called neurotransmitters. The release of neurotransmitters is governed by electrical signals within the cell itself. Finally, the dendrites receive signals from other cells by detecting the neurotransmitters. A microfluidic device, as seen in this image, allows researchers to study the communication between two different populations of neurons by controlling where the axons of each of the populations can grow to signal the other.
In this image, the cell population shining green marks the cells that were modified by a specially designed virus to mimic diseased cells, allowing the researchers to examine how diseased cells can affect healthy cells (which are depicted in orange).
The channels between the chambers typically range from 1 micrometer to 100 micrometers wide, or from roughly 75 times smaller to slightly bigger than a human hair.
Technique
This image was created using fluorescence microscopy.
Esmeralda Paric, Macquarie University