It is a mystery
Tory Lanez Stan
The dye in Doritos can make mice transparent
-Ray specs and invisibility cloaks are the stuff of sci-fi and fantasy, but sometimes science is just stranger than fiction. A food dye that helps give certain sodas and snacks their hallmark orange hue renders mouse skin almost completely see-through in a reversible, potentially non-toxic research method that could transform medical and scientific imaging. Because of a counterintuitive fundamental physics principle, Tartrazine, also known as Yellow 5, can temporarily turn biological tissue transparent to the naked eye, as described in a study published September 5 in the journal Science.
So far, the scientists behind the new discovery have used the method to see the organs in a mouse’s intact abdomen, glimpse the pulsing vessels surrounding a rodent skull, and to get an exceptionally clear view of muscle tissue through a microscope. With further safety and efficacy research, the method may spur new scientific findings, boost microscopy advances, and improve medical diagnostic strategies and treatments.
“I instantly looked at it and went, ‘my god, this is revolutionary,’” says Christopher Rowlands, a senior lecturer and biophotonics researcher at Imperial College London.
Random discovery but at the same time
-Ray specs and invisibility cloaks are the stuff of sci-fi and fantasy, but sometimes science is just stranger than fiction. A food dye that helps give certain sodas and snacks their hallmark orange hue renders mouse skin almost completely see-through in a reversible, potentially non-toxic research method that could transform medical and scientific imaging. Because of a counterintuitive fundamental physics principle, Tartrazine, also known as Yellow 5, can temporarily turn biological tissue transparent to the naked eye, as described in a study published September 5 in the journal Science.
So far, the scientists behind the new discovery have used the method to see the organs in a mouse’s intact abdomen, glimpse the pulsing vessels surrounding a rodent skull, and to get an exceptionally clear view of muscle tissue through a microscope. With further safety and efficacy research, the method may spur new scientific findings, boost microscopy advances, and improve medical diagnostic strategies and treatments.
“I instantly looked at it and went, ‘my god, this is revolutionary,’” says Christopher Rowlands, a senior lecturer and biophotonics researcher at Imperial College London.
Random discovery but at the same time