Therese Roth, Graduate Student (Barald Lab), Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Michigan Medical School

These cells have been cultured from a mouse sciatic nerve. The green stain shows that these cells express neurofibromin, the protein product of the NF1 gene. The red fluorescence highlights actin protein, which gives the cell its shape. The blue fluorescence identifies the nucleus of the cells. Gene mutations in the NF1gene cause tumors under the skin. Such tumors can become large and disfiguring.