Post by Nicolas Hubacz, M.S.

🧠 Mapping the Brain Before Birth 🌀 This image captures a remarkable moment in development: cranial motor nerves growing through an embryonic mouse at just 12.5 days of development. Researchers in the lab of Elizabeth Engle MD at Boston Children's Hospital segmented and color-coded each nerve, allowing them to trace its journey from the brain to the muscles it will eventually control. These developing neural highways are responsible for essential functions such as eye movement, facial expression, swallowing, and speech. Long before birth, the nervous system is already building the intricate connections that will allow the body to interact with the world. By visualizing these pathways as they form, scientists can better understand how the brain wires itself and what happens when development goes off course. 📸 Credit: Gabriela Carillo and Fiona Mensching, Lab of Elizabeth Engle, Boston Children's Hospital #Neuroscience #Imaging #Development