Welcome to the Amira-Avizo Software Use Case Gallery

Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) is a powerful and versatile technique for materials characterization and present in many laboratories. The integration of an X-ray target holder and detector allows expanding the modalities of SEM by X-ray imaging. These little hardware adaptations enable radiography ... Read more

Evidence for macroscopic life in the Paleoproterozoic Era comes from 1.8 billion-year-old (Ga) compression fossils [Han TM, Runnegar B (1992) Science 257:232–235; Knoll et al. (2006) Philos Trans R Soc Lond B 361:1023–1038],  Stirling biota [Bengtson S et al. (2007) Paleobiology 33:351–381], and large colonial organisms exhibiting signs of coordinated growth from the 2.1-Ga Francevillian series, Gabon. Here we report on pyritized string-shaped structures from... Read more

Macroautophagy is morphologically characterized by autophagosome formation. Autophagosomes are double-membraned vesicles that sequester cytoplasmic components for further degradation in the lysosome. Basal autophagy is paramount for intracellular quality control in post-mitotic cells but, surprisingly, the number of autophagosomes in post-mitotic neurons is very low, suggesting that alternative degradative structures could exist in neurons…

Accumulating evidence indicates the critical importance of cerebrovascular dysfunction in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). However, systematic comparative studies on the precise brain vasculature of wild-type and AD model mice are still rare. Using an image optimization method for analyzing Micro-Optical Sectioning Tomography (MOST) data, we generated cross-scale whole-brain 3D atlases that cover the entire vascular system from large vessels down to smallest capillaries at ... Read more

Cell-to-cell contact is essential for communication and development of multicellular organisms. A prerequisite is the passage through membranes. That way, molecular exchange and information flow is regulated via hormones, membrane proteins and pores.
In plants, the rigid cell walls prevent large membrane contact areas between protoplasts. Only plasmodesmata, minute channels between adjacent cells, form direct connections. Often, molecular data of the proteins involved are manifold but t... Read more

The cleanliness of liquid steel is defined by the amounts of dissolved unwanted impurities and precipitated unwanted non-metallic phases.[…] Improving the cleanliness of the steel would mean a lower fraction of impurities in the final product. […] A novel approach, utilizing controlled synthetic inclusion/metal samples, has been developed to study the reactions between free inclusion-slag droplets and steel. The technique combines High-Temperature Confocal Scanning Laser Microscop... Read more

Decommissioning of the damaged Chernobyl nuclear reactor Unit 4 is a top priority for the global community. Before such operations begin, it is crucial to understand the behaviour of the hazardous materials formed during the accident. Since those materials formed under extreme and mostly unquantified conditions, modelling alone is insufficient to accurately predict their physical, chemical and, predominantly, mechanical behaviour. Meanwhile, knowledge of the mechanical characteristics of thos... Read more

The subtalar joint describes an articulation between talus and calcaneus, forming one of two joints of the hindfoot with the tibiotalar or ankle joint above the talus and the subtalar joint below. The talus comprises of three facets (anterior, middle and posterior) that articulate with the mating facets on the calcaneus at the subtalar joint. The bones are connected by a complex of ligamentous structures that connect the talus to the calcaneus and both structures to the adjacent navicular bon... Read more

In the 6th century BC different techniques of coin manufacture were employed by mints in mainland Greece and in the Greek colonies in Southern Italy. In Greece these techniques were evidently derived from the Lydians and consisted in striking a piece of cast metal of predetermined weight (a ‘blank’ or flan) between two engraved dies made of hardened bronze. Colonies in Magna Graecia, however, uniquely developed another set of minting techniques to produce what today is called incuse coina... Read more

The microstructure morphologies have been characterized by high resolution laboratory X-ray computed tomography in Carbon Fiber Reinforced Carbon and Silicon Carbide (C/C-SiC) ceramic composites fabricated by Gaseous Silicon Infiltration (GSI) from C/C preforms of three different architectures: 3D stitched cloth fabric; 3D orthogonal woven fabric; and needled short-cut felt. Each composites’ microstructure was influenced by the structure of the C/C preform. By incorporating tomography with ... Read more

Microbial parasites may behave collectively to manipulate their host’s behavior. We examine adaptations of a microbial parasite in its natural environment: the body of its coevolved and manipulated host.

Electron microscopy and 3D reconstructions of host and parasite tissues reveal that this fungus invades muscle fibers throughout the ant’s body but leaves the brain intact, and that the fungal cells connect to form extensive networks.

Intracellular pathogens include all viruses, many bacteria and parasites capable of invading and surviving within host cells. Key to survival is the subversion of host cell pathways by the pathogen for the purpose of propagation and evading the immune system. The intracellular bacterium Shigella flexneri, the causative agent of bacillary dysentery, invades host cells in a vacuole that is subsequently ruptured to allow growth of the pathogen within the host cytoplasm…

Positive-strand RNA viruses, which can be devastating pathogens in humans, animals and plants, replicate their genomes on intracellular membranes. Here, we describe the three-dimensional ultrastructural organization of a tombusvirus replicase in yeast, a valuable model for exploring virus–host interactions…

It is well known that the phonatory process changes during the life span. However, detailed investigations on potential factors concerned are rare. To deal with this issue, we performed extended biomechanical, macro anatomical, and histological analyses of the contributing laryngeal structures in ex vivo juvenile sheep models. Altogether twelve juvenile sheep larynges were analyzed within the phonatory experiments. Three different elongation levels and 16 different flow levels were applied to... Read more

A stimulation electrode was placed unilaterally near the terminal adduction branch of the recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) adjacent to the right cricothyroid joint. The electrode was connected to an implant located subcutaneously at the neck region. Predesigned training patterns were automatically delivered by a bidirectional radio frequency link using a programming device and were repeated automatically by the implant every other day over 11 weeks in the awake animal. Outcome parameters compr... Read more

The elongate-necked aquatic plesiosaurs existed for 135 Myr during the Mesozoic. The function of this elongate neck is a point of debate. Using computed tomography and three-dimensional (3D) modelling, the range of motion (ROM) of the plesiosaur Nichollssaura borealis neck was assessed. To quantify the ROM, the intervertebral mobility was measured along the cervical vertebral column. This was done by manipulating the 3D models in the lateral and dorsoventral directions during two tri... Read more

To quantitatively evaluate brain tissue and its corresponding function, knowledge of the 3D cellular distribution is essential. The gold standard to obtain this information is histology, a destructive and labor-intensive technique where the specimen is sliced and examined under a light microscope, providing 3D information at nonisotropic resolution. To overcome the limitations of conventional histology, we use phase-contrast X-ray tomography with optimized optics, reconstruction, and image an... Read more

Neural circuitry in the lumbar spinal cord governs two principal features of locomotion, rhythm and pattern, which reflect intra- and interlimb movement. These features are functionally organized into a hierarchy that precisely controls stepping in a stereotypic, speed-dependent fashion. Here, we show that a specific component of the locomotor pattern can be independently manipulated…

The vascular (arterial or venous) wall is a fascinating structure. At the simplest level, we can think of the wall as being composed of three distinct, but interacting, layers . The vascular wall changes its structure in conditions such as hypertension which can cause a thickening of the wall. Unfortunately, the details of this ‘remodeling’ process are poorly understood.

Therefore, studying the 3D architecture may provide vital clues for future therapeutic targets.

R... Read more