Month: November 2016

“Tour Through the Brain of Python,” a diceCT visualized video fly-through of a Macklot’s python head by Paul Gignac and Nathan Kley, is a winner in the fifth annual FASEB BioArt Competition!

It’s so important to seize opportunities to share the wonder of discovery with the public. The BioArt images showcase the beauty of scientific research and are a great place to start the conversation —Hudson Freeze, PhD, FASEB President.

The Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology holds an annual BioArt Competition to help engage Members of Congress and the general public about the immense value of biomedical and bioimaging research in the United States and the need for sustained support of federal funding agencies that facilitate life science and biomedical studies. To celebrate the competition, winning entries will be exhibited at the National Institutes of Health and online at FASEB.org.

“Tour through the brain of a python”— Paul M. Gignac, Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences, and Nathan J. Kley, Stony Brook University School of Medicine

“We used high precision computed tomography (CT) and traditional radiography to study the nasal conchae, complex structures within the nasal cavity that condition air via countercurrent heat exchange. Concha size differed between 2 subspecies of Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia) that inhabit climatically distinct habitats, suggesting adaptation to local climates. The conchae and external bill are nested structures that were positively related in size and play functionally related roles in thermoregulation, therefore suggesting phenotypic integration. We hypothesize that the typically deeper and wider bill of the dune subspecies has evolved, at least in part, to accommodate larger conchae.”

– Lead author, Raymond Danner

Head over to The Auk to see the the published image sets!

For those diceCT users working STABILITY protocols into your specimen preparation regimes, we’ve been hearing reports that your thermally-triggered initiator, VA-044 (2,2′-Azobis[2-(2-imidazolin-2-yl)propane]dihydrochloride), may be difficult to source. It tends to be sold in larger volumes than researchers practically require for STABILITY, which has made it difficult to purchase while leaving much of the chemical unused on researcher’s shelves.

Dr. Vera Weisbecker (University of Queensland, Queensland, Australia) has recently offered to share some of her supply with STABILITY users, who might not be able to get a hold of it from Wako Specialty Chemicals or elsewhere. Please email her directly if you are interested. 

We, @DiceCT, would like to offer an enormous thank you to Dr. Weisbecker for her generosity and openness, in particular, as well as for advancing STABILITY for our larger community!