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posted by martyb on Saturday July 21 2018, @05:49PM   Printer-friendly
from the now-to-wire-up-a-simulant dept.

3D image reveals hidden neurons in fruit-fly brain

Scientists have produced a 3D image of a fruit fly's brain that's so detailed, researchers can trace connections between neurons across the entire organ.

Fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster) display a suite of complex behaviours, including courtship dances and learning. But understanding the neural networks that drive these behaviours remains a challenge. The data from this image, published on 19 July in Cell, resolved the insect's brain down to individual cells — revealing some neurons that have never been seen before. This offers scientists a new tool with which to study fruit-fly behaviour and allows them to compare the insects' neural networks with that of other species.

Researchers cut a fly's brain — roughly the size of a poppy seed — into more than 7,000 slices and shot a beam of electrons through the sample. A high-speed camera captured high-resolution pictures of each slice — a process never used before — generating roughly 21 million images that the team stitched together using custom computer software.

Also at Science Magazine, Science News, Discovery Magazine, and National Geographic.

A Complete Electron Microscopy Volume of the Brain of Adult Drosophila melanogaster (open, DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2018.06.019) (DX)


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  • (Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday July 21 2018, @06:15PM (5 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Saturday July 21 2018, @06:15PM (#710518)

    they hope to scan a politician's brain in the same manner

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  • (Score: 3, Informative) by fyngyrz on Saturday July 21 2018, @06:38PM

    by fyngyrz (6567) on Saturday July 21 2018, @06:38PM (#710530) Journal

    they hope to scan a politician's brain in the same manner

    ...pretty sure it'll take fewer slices...

  • (Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday July 21 2018, @07:39PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Saturday July 21 2018, @07:39PM (#710548)

    That would be easy to prove as made up data.
    Everyone know's politicians do not have brains.

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday July 21 2018, @08:58PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Saturday July 21 2018, @08:58PM (#710565)

    They said fruit fly but they really meant HRC.

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday July 22 2018, @10:37AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday July 22 2018, @10:37AM (#710709)

    "they hope to scan a politician's brain in the same manner"

    Actually, I would suggest one of our very own soylentils. Perhaps that Runaway dude, or the Buzztard, or JMo, or maybe even VLM. Just sayin'.

  • (Score: 2) by realDonaldTrump on Sunday July 22 2018, @02:34PM

    by realDonaldTrump (6614) on Sunday July 22 2018, @02:34PM (#710761) Homepage Journal

    The scientology's not ready yet, they're working on the Brain Scan. Then they need to do the Brain Copy. Possibly the Brain Fax. They'll be able to scan the brains of our very best politicians. Fax that to a lot of places. And make copies in those places. So it's like having the same guy -- the very best guy -- in a lot of places.