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

04 December 2013

Brain Waves

Seeing is fundamental to life, and the brain knows it. Before the eyes open for the first time, the brain has already prepared itself for the onslaught of visual information that it’s about to receive. In utero, waves of electricity travel spontaneously from the developing eyes to the brain along nerves known as the visual pathway. Scientists have used calcium imaging to watch their flow in prenatal mice. This video shows waves (as flashes of bright green) that have travelled from the retina to the superior colliculus, a structure in the visual pathway. The researchers were able to track how these electrical ripples behave and how they eventually reach the brain. They suggest that retinal waves are most likely present in human foetal development as well, and may carry the information that will wire our brain up for vision.

Written by Gaëlle Coullon

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.