X-Rayed Skeleton

A web of chromatin grows along the DNA inside the nucleus of our cells – it’s represented in bright colours in this mouse nerve cell. The skeleton-like chromatin changes as stem cells develop into nerve cells, shaping the life inside by controlling access to the DNA. Understandably, scientists want to take a close look at chromatin, but many have found it too sensitive to lab techniques. Here, x-rays fired into the nucleus from many angles, gently highlight two different types of chromatin in 3D without causing any damage. One form of chromatin (blue green) is surrounded and linked to heterochromatin (red-yellow), a more compact form which affects which genes can be switched on or off, playing major roles in development. Now the x-ray technique can be applied to different types of cell (even those with genetic mutations), and heterochromatin watched as is moves and shifts, altering life as it goes.

Written by John Ankers

John Ankers

Writer

A former researcher in systems biology, John is now an online biology tutor and professional coach supporting the wellbeing of scientists and NHS professionals. He's writing, too, of course.

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• Image courtesy of the Berkeley Lab, UCSF
• Department of Anatomy, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
• Image copyright held by original authors
• Research published in Cell Reports, November 2016