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Don't Forget to Serve Popcorn with that Live Cell Movie

Aug 15, 2007

MIT physicist Michael Feld has led the recent development of a microscope that can generate images of live cells in their native state. The microscope uses refraction images taken from several different angles and combined to form a three-dimensional image. While the technique can now only be used on single cells or small organisms like C. elegans, one potential application might be viewing how drug tests affect cells in real-time.

Breaking News
The Scan

Pig Organ Transplants Considered

The Wall Street Journal reports that the US Food and Drug Administration may soon allow clinical trials that involve transplanting pig organs into humans.

'Poo-Bank' Proposal

Harvard Medical School researchers suggest people should bank stool samples when they are young to transplant when they later develop age-related diseases.

Spurred to Develop Again

New Scientist reports that researchers may have uncovered why about 60 percent of in vitro fertilization embryos stop developing.

Science Papers Examine Breast Milk Cell Populations, Cerebral Cortex Cellular Diversity, Micronesia Population History

In Science this week: unique cell populations found within breast milk, 100 transcriptionally distinct cell populations uncovered in the cerebral cortex, and more.