Dr. Nipam Patel

Confocal images (ZEISS LSM 780) of developing embryos of the Longfin Inshore Squid (Doryteuthis pealeii). The embryos sit atop a ball of yolk. At the very top of the embryo, the fins are beginning to grow out of the animal’s mantle. The developing
arms and tentacles with suckers extend out over the surface of the yolk. Nuclei are in blue, cilia form tufts at the surface of the animal, and the developing nervous system is highlighted by actin staining. (Credit: MBL Embryology Course).

Late stage embryos and hatchlings of the Longfin Inshore Squid (Doryteuthis pealeii) and the dwarf cuttlefish (Sepia bandensis). Embryos at the beginning and end of the movie were imaged by confocal microscopy (ZEISS LSM 780). The hatchling shown in the middle of the movie displays flashing chromatophores which allow the animal to actively alter its color. (Credit: Maggie Rigney, MBL Embryology Course, and Nipam Patel).

Confocal image (ZEISS LSM 780) of a developing embryo of the Longfin Inshore Squid (Doryteuthis pealeii). The embryos sit atop a ball of yolk. At the very top of the embryo, the fins are beginning to grow out of the animal’s mantle. The developing
arms and tentacles with suckers extend out over the surface of the yolk. Nuclei are in blue, cilia (red) form tufts at the surface of the animal, and the developing nervous system and musculature are highlighted by actin staining (green). (Credit: Juliana Roscito MBL Embryology Course, and Nipam Patel).

Dissecting microscope image of late-stage embryos of the Longfin Inshore Squid (Doryteuthis pealeii). The animals have started to swim by pumping water through their siphons. Orange pigment has started to accumulate in their eyes and their chromatophores. (Credit: Nipam Patel).

Scanning electron microscope (SEM) image of the transparent wing region of a Golden Clearwing butterfly (Godyris duillia). Instead of large scales tiling over the entire wing surface, the scales have been modified into slender bristles, which allow light to pass through the wing. Wing transparency provides an ideal camouflage mechanism for many species of butterflies and moths. (Credit: Jaap van Krugten, Patel Lab at UC Berkeley, and Nipam Patel).

Helium Electron Microscope (ZEISS HIM) image of a wing scale from the Buckeye butterfly (Junonia coenia). In blue are the ribs and ridges that cover the scale surface, and in red is the bottom layer, known as a lamina, that creates the structural blue color of these particular scales. (Credit: Rachel Thayer, Patel Lab at UC Berkeley, and Nipam Patel).

Confocal image (ZEISS LSM 880) of the pupal wing of the Glasswing butterfly (Greta oto). Cell nuclei are in blue. The developing scale surface membrane is in magenta, and the internal actin cytoskeleton is in green. At this stage, the straight bristle scales have grown quite long, while the scales that will form forked bristles look like small triangles. Both types of scales contain straight rods of actin inside. The reduced size of these scales allow light to pass through the wing of the butterfly, allowing it to be transparent. (Credit: Aaron Pomerantz, Patel Lab at UC Berkeley, and Nipam Patel).

Confocal image (ZEISS LSM 700) of an adult wing of the Emerald Swallowtail (Papilio palinurus). The scales tile the surface of the wing the dimpled scales create a structural green color, while the remaining thin, flat scales are black from melanin pigment.(Credit: Ryan Null, Patel Lab at UC Berkeley, and Nipam Patel).