Now in our 13th year of bringing you beautiful imagery from biomedical science every day

Search the archive of over 4000 images

Baby Brains

Detailed mapping of how the brain's connections develop

18 November 2019

Baby Brains

Like a ball of wires, bright colours pick out groups of nerve cells or neurons in this scan of a new-born baby’s brain. Diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging follows the flow of molecules inside these brain bundles, mapping out neuronal connections in detailed scans – this is one of hundreds made available to the public as part of The Developing Human Connectome Project. While the goal is to explore how the brain’s wiring develops and changes before and after birth, scans have their own challenges – from imaging babies in the womb as early as 24 weeks into pregnancy, to making sure fidgeting little ones are asleep long enough to complete the scans – new software allows the images to be 'corrected' for these wriggles. The valuable results will be used as a reference for developmental biologists worldwide, and combined with genetic information to explore how brains develop differently in conditions like autism.

Written by John Ankers

  • Image from King's College London
  • Research from King's College London, Imperial College London and the University of Oxford
  • Image copyright held by the researchers
  • The Developing Human Connectome Project

Search The Archive

Submit An Image

Follow on Tumblr

Follow on Instagram

What is BPoD?

BPoD stands for Biomedical Picture of the Day. Managed by the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences until Jul 2023, it is now run independently by a dedicated team of scientists and writers. The website aims to engage everyone, young and old, in the wonders of biology, and its influence on medicine. The ever-growing archive of more than 4000 research images documents over a decade of progress. Explore the collection and see what you discover. Images are kindly provided for inclusion on this website through the generosity of scientists across the globe.

Read More

BPoD is also available in Catalan at www.bpod.cat with translations by the University of Valencia.