Watch an animal getting to life
The dream of watching a single cell getting transformed into embryo is finally possible ,thanks to the latest technique, called Digital Scanned Laser Light-Sheet Fluorescence Microscopy.Previously researchers were successful in capturing first few hours of development in invertebrates like Nematodes but performing the same feat in vertebrates was always a difficult task. Joachim Wittbrod tand others from EMBL ,Germany has made it possible to visualize a Zebra fish embryo grow from a single cell to 20,000 cells with a beating heart.
They created a three-dimensional digital reconstruction of the developing fish, which may provide insights into how human organs form which will be very vital in curing of various diseases.
The microscope scans the embryo with what they call a sheet of light along many different directions, allowing a computer to then assemble a three-dimensional image that over time provides a complete view of the development–Wittbrodt
This technique can be used to understand evolution at cellular level by studying other animals like Mice, Chicken and other closest relatives of vertebrates.Its like a huge puzzle being solved and hope many pleasant surprises are in store of this amazing new technique ,which might help to understand development like never before.
Reference :
Reconstruction of Zebrafish Early Embryonic Development by Scanned Light Sheet Microscopy
Philipp J. Keller, Annette D. Schmidt, Joachim Wittbrodt, and Ernst H. K. Stelzer
Published online October 9 2008; 10.1126/science.1162493
Watch this amazing journey of single cell to embryo on EMBL site
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