Jewels Inside

These sparkling jewel-like shapes are found within the human small intestine. They're actually clusters of Paneth cells, which form deep wells (known as crypts) in the lining of the gut, and are one of the main types of cells that make up this particular organ. They're packed full of tiny granules containing our body's own antibiotics – bug-killing anti-bacterial chemicals called defensins, as well as other molecules that help to boost the immune system. Together, this biological defence system helps to protect us from any bad bacteria that might try to sneak through the gut walls and infect the body. However, there's one aspect of this image that isn't true to life: although they may look beautiful in this picture, sadly Paneth cells don't have these glowing colours in real life. This image was taken down a microscope, then artificially coloured using image manipulation software to highlight the different structures.

Written by Kat Arney

Kat Arney

Writer

Dr Kat Arney is an award-winning science writer, broadcaster and public speaker, and is the founder and Creative Director of First Create The Media.

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• Image by Ian Newton
• This image is included in the International Images for Science 2015 exhibition, organised by the Royal Photographic Society and supported by Siemens as part of the Curiosity Project.
• Copyright held by the photographer