Diagrams of the Brain Paint a Colorful 'Brainbow'

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An image from the cerebral cortex of a "brainbow" mapped mouse brain. Livet et al. hide caption

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Livet et al.

An image from the cerebral cortex of a "brainbow" mapped mouse brain.

Livet et al.

Researchers have developed a new technique to label individual neurons in the brain in different colors. This method, which the scientists have dubbed 'brainbow,' could help shed light on brain function in a way that traditional staining methods don't allow.

Jeff Lichtman, M.D., Ph.D., professor of molecular and cellular biology and member of the Center for Brain Science, Harvard University

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Livet et al.

At left, parts of a motor neuron from a nerve that controls eye movement, in a "brainbow" mapped mouse. At right, neurons in the dentate gyrus, part of the hippocampus a region of the brain that controls memory and spatial navigation.

Livet et al.