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2017
In this image by Ingrid Lekk and Steve Wilson, we're not just contemplating an eye in formation, we're witnessing the activation of a gene, in real time, at the heart of a living organism.
Thanks to the natural transparency of zebrafish embryos, researchers can directly observe how genes sculpt tissues, trace the boundaries of a future organ, and organize the first sensory circuits.
This unique model not only helps us to better understand the early stages of eye development, but also to identify the genetic mutations responsible for human congenital malformations.
Through this image, the language of life is revealed, written layer by layer, cell by cell, in an eye that will soon open out onto the world.
