Mapping the Mind: Online Interactive Atlas Shows Activity of 20,000 Brain-Related Genes
A meticulously constructed atlas of the human brain reveals the molecular roots of mental illness—and of everyday behavior
Mapping the Mind: Online Interactive Atlas Shows Activity of 20,000 Brain-Related Genes
- MAPPING A MOLECULE FOR MOVEMENT In this screenshot from the Allen Brain Atlas, spots overlaying three MRI snapshots of the brain denote the activity of a gene called ADORA2a implicated in movement disorders such as Huntington’s and Parkinson’s diseases... Courtesy of the Allen Institute for Brain Science
- CONSTELLATION OF GENES This image from a gene chip shows the activity of thousands of genes from tissue taken from a section of the hippocampus. Each spot denotes activity from a separate, single gene; the brighter the spot, the more active that gene is in the tissue sample tested... Courtesy of the Allen Institute for Brain Science
- REVEALING ANATOMY Anatomists cut each solidified brain slice into blocks small enough to fit onto a 2 X 3-inch microscope slide, making incisions that skirt key brain structures ( left ). Staining of a thin sliver of each block can highlight the main bodies of nerve cells ( top, purplish image ) with the darker areas indicating high cell density near the brain’s surface... Courtesy of the Allen Institute for Brain Science
- BEEFING UP THE BRAIN A scientist pours a solidifying substance onto the frozen brain ( left ), so that it maintains its shape and can be easily divided into smaller sections. Removing a layer of white residue smoothes the surface of the slab and reveals its internal anatomy ( right )... Courtesy of the Allen Institute for Brain Science
- STRIPPING OFF SCAFFOLDING In the first phase of construction, laboratory workers remove the thin, sturdy membrane, embedded with a net of blood vessels, that encases the brain. Stripping the cerebrum of this protective layer allows the brain to be sliced more evenly... Courtesy of the Allen Institute for Brain Science
- UNCHARTED TERRITORY Through this web portal, researchers can enter an intricate molecular landscape in which the active genes dot each hill and valley of the human brain. The interactive atlas, called the Allen Human Brain Atlas, is designed to greatly speed scientists’ discovery of the molecular underpinnings of mental illness as well as the intricacies of ordinary human thought and behavior... Allen Brain Atlas data portal: www.brain-map.org