MELVILLE, N.Y., April 27, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Nikon Instruments Inc. is pleased to announce the winners of the fourth annual Nikon Small World in Motion Photomicrography Competition . First place for the 2014 competition is awarded to Dr. Mariana Muzzopappa (of the Institute for Research in Biomedicine Barcelona) and Jim Swoger (of the Center for Genomic Regulation, Barcelona), for their stunning capture of the development of a zebrafish lateral line – a process that could provide insight into curing deafness in humans.
The mesmerizing first-place video demonstrates the development of the zebrafish lateral line, a sensory organ analogous to the inner ear of humans, that in fish senses movements in the surrounding water. Muzzopappa and Swoger captured this time-lapse footage by using a combination of transgenes in the fish to label undifferentiated and support cells, and track hair cell differentiation throughout a 36-hour timeframe. The result is an examination of organ development that is stunning not only in its visual effect, but the potential it represents for scientists to one-day replicate the process to counter hearing loss in humans.
Dr. Douglas Clark of Paedia Corporation took second place with a time-lapse look at crystals forming in a single drop of a saturated solution of caffeine in water. This 20-minute process is compressed into just 40 seconds in the video, revealing the beautifully chaotic formation of linear crystalline segments in a constrained space. Clark used polarized diascopic illumination to reveal the rainbow crystals that formed in the solution, a dynamic return to equilibrium from a liquid state.
Finally, Dr. John Hart, professor emeritus of the University of Colorado, Boulder, earned third place for his video of volatile oil film on a water surface. As a professor of atmospheric and oceanic sciences for many years, Hart aimed to capture the small-scale dynamics of evaporation, instability, and coalescence within the oil film that are important to the longevity of fuel spills. Hart also revealed an unexpected beauty, using reflected light differential interference contrast (DIC) techniques to capture the vibrant, almost-shimmering colors.
"The capability to capture and share the movement or development of a specimen under the microscope clearly represents one of the greater advancements in the tools available to the scientific community in recent years – and we are honored to shine a light on some of the best examples each year," said Eric Flem, Communications and CRM manager, for Nikon Instruments. "We are continually amazed that this equipment is involved not only in doing the cutting edge science, but also enabling us all to witness it firsthand. As the deadline for this year's competition approaches, we hope that these winning videos will inspire other scientists and science-enthusiasts to share the beauty and motion they capture under a microscope as well."
The 2014 Nikon Small World in Motion completion was judged by Paul Maddox, Assistant Professor of Biology at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill.
The deadline for submissions to the 2015 Nikon Small World in Motion competition is April 30 th , 2015. Submissions can be sent via www.nikonsmallworld.com .
For additional information, please visit www.nikonsmallworld.com , or follow the conversation on Facebook and Twitter @NikonSmallWorld .
THE OFFICIAL 2014 NIKON SMALL WORLD IN MOTION WINNERS
The following are the Top Three Winners and Honorable Mentions for Nikon Small World in Motion 2014. The full gallery of winning videos can be viewed at www.nikonsmallworld.com .
1 st Place Dr. Mariana Muzzopappa with Jim Swoger Institute for Research in Biomedicine Barcelona Barcelona, Spain The development of the zebrafish lateral line, the organ that senses water movements in the fish 4D SPIM (Selective Plane Illumination Microscopy) 20x/0.5
2 nd Place Dr. Douglas Clark Paedia Corporation San Francisco, California, USA Time-lapse of caffeine crystallization Polarized light
3 rd Place Dr. John Hart Dept. Atmospheric and Oceanic Sci, Univ. Colorado Boulder, Colorado, USA Oil film floating on water Reflected Light Differential Interference Contrast (Nomarski) 12.5x
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Dr. Nancy Costigliola-Tarsky Harvard Medical School Brookline, Massachusetts, USA Vimentin (a protein) undergoing mitosis Confocal 40x
Mr. Ralph Grimm Jimboomba, Queensland, Australia Rotifer (microscopic water creature) Differential Interference Contrast 750x
Mr. Gerd A. Günther Düsseldorf, Germany Sulfur crystals Brightfield, Polarized Light 100x
Mr. Elliott Hagedorn Boston Children's Hospital Boston, Massachusetts, USA Time-lapse of a 2 day old zebrafish embryo with green erythrocytes and red blood vessels Confocal
Dr. Nils Lindstrom The Roslin Institute Edinburgh, Scotland Developing mouse embryonic kidneys Fluorescence 4x
Dr. Jeremy Logue National Institutes of Health Bethesda, Maryland, USA Human melanoma (cancer) cells blebbing (distorting) Confocal 100x
Ms. Xi Lu University of Maryland Washington, D.C., USA Macroscope 2x, 6x
Mr. Pushkar Paranjpe Post Doctoral Fellow Bangalore, Karnataka, India Tracking the locomotion of a fruit fly 200 Frames/s video acquired using an AVT Pike camera 10x
Dr. Masha Prager-Khoutorsky Centre for Research in Neuroscience Montreal, Quebec, Canada Aplysia (sea slug) neuron Confocal 100x
Mr. Alex Ritter with Dr. Bi-Chang Chen (Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan), Dr. Wesley Legant (Janelia Farm Research Campus, Ashburn, VA), Dr. Liang Gao (Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY) National Institutes of Health Washington, D.C., USA Killer T cell engaging a cancer cell Light Sheet Microscopy 1000x
Ms. Ashley Smith CFD Research Corporation Huntsville, Alabama, USA Leukocyte Inflammation Response Fluorescence 10x
Mr. Wim van Egmond Micropolitan MuseumBerkel en Rodenrijs, Netherlands Lacrymaria olor (ciliate) Differential Interference Contrast 160x
Mr. Shaohe Wang University of California, San Diego La Jolla, California, USA C. elegans (nematode) cell division Confocal 63x
Mr. Kevin Yehl Emory University Atlanta, Georgia, USA DNA micro-machine rolling across a fluorescently labeled RNA surface Brightfield
ABOUT THE NIKON SMALL WORLD PHOTOMICROGRAPHY COMPETITION
The Nikon Small World Photomicrography Competition is open to anyone with an interest in photography. Participants may submit their images in traditional 35mm format, or upload digital images directly at www.nikonsmallworld.com . For additional information, contact Nikon Small World, Nikon Instruments Inc., 1300 Walt Whitman Road, Melville, NY 11747, USA or phone (631) 547-4200.
ABOUT NIKON INSTRUMENTS INC.
Nikon Instruments Inc. is a world leader in the development and manufacture of optical and digital imaging technology for biomedical applications. Now in its 97th year, Nikon provides complete optical systems that offer optimal versatility, performance and productivity. Cutting-edge instruments include microscopes, digital imaging products and software. Nikon Instruments is one of the microscopy and digital imaging arms of Nikon Inc., the world leader in digital imaging, precision optics and photo imaging technology. For more information, visit www.nikoninstruments.com . Product-related inquiries may be directed to Nikon Instruments at 800-52-NIKON.
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