BPoD has moved!

BPoD has recently changed our domain name - we can now be found at bpod.org.uk

Please update your bookmarks!

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

Search the archive of over 4000 images

Unveiling the Pancreas
30 April 2017

Unveiling the Pancreas

Over 400 million people worldwide suffer from diabetes – a number that’s set to increase as the years go on. Diabetes occurs when the body stops responding effectively to insulin – a hormone that’s integral to regulating sugar levels in our blood. Insulin is produced in the Islets of Langerhans cells, which are present in huge numbers in the pancreas. To gain further insight into how the pancreas works as a whole, researchers created datasets by virtually colour-coding individual islets within a mouse pancreas, which has helped to map out the exact distribution and volume of the islets. The result is a detailed anatomical model showcasing the distribution of the Islets of Langerhans within the pancreas, which could play an integral role in future diabetes studies. This rendered image demonstrates the pancreas of a healthy mouse with the position of individual islets (coloured spheres), as they would appear inside the organ (grey).

Written by Katie Panteli

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.