Friday, April 17th, 2009

Night Vision and DNA

Why do some animals have much better night vision than others? We'll talk about new research tracing the root of improved night vision to the architecture of the DNA inside the photoreceptor rod cells of the animals' eyes. Writing in the journal Cell, researchers say that an unusual way of packing the DNA within the rod cell nuclei turns the nuclei themselves into into tiny light-collecting lenses. The structure prevents light from excessive scattering within the eyes, improving their light collecting efficiency. We'll find out more.

Guests

Jochen Guck
Lecturer, Physics Department
University of Cambridge
Cambridge, United Kingdom

Related Links

• Science News: Seemingly misplaced DNA acts as lenses

Segment produced by:Christopher Intagliata

Friday, April 17th, 2009

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• Night Vision and DNA
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