Science#01 in June 2026 EditionMapping whole-brain neuronal connectivity at synaptic resolution in adult Drosophila using expansion microscopy
Nils Lindstrom, Chen-Wei Zhao, Miriam Al-Sayed et al.
OPENSTEM EDITORIAL SUMMARY
What the research examines
Combining 16x hydrogel tissue expansion with high-throughput volumetric lattice light-sheet microscopy, neurobiologists reconstruct all 130,000 neurons and over 50 million chemical synapses in an adult fruit fly brain at sub-20-nanometer optical resolution.
Why it may matter
Delivers an accessible, optical pathway to complete animal connectomics without reliance on serial electron microscopy.
What to examine carefully
Isotropic gel expansion occasionally undergoes non-uniform micro-shearing around dense cuticular head capsule margins.
Editorial scope: This is a concise, independently written introduction based on the publisher information, not a full systematic review or independent replication. It must not replace reading the original methods, limitations and conclusions.
STUDENT RESEARCH LENS · ORIGINAL OPENSTEM NOTES
Try a small, reproducible follow-up
Query public fly connectome graph databases to calculate clustering coefficients and path lengths across central complex navigation circuits.
Questions to investigate
- How was mechanical distortion measured and corrected across multi-tile volumetric image stitched volumes?
- What automated synapse classification accuracy was achieved against benchmark TEM ground-truth datasets?
These are independently proposed educational investigations, not activities that the original research authors claim to have completed.
Publication & researcher information
JournalNature
Published online2026-06-03
Authors (selected)Nils Lindstrom, Chen-Wei Zhao, Miriam Al-Sayed et al.
University / laboratoryJanelia Research Campus, HHMI
CountryUnited States
Multi-author research may involve universities in several countries. Unverified institutions and contact addresses are not inferred from authors' names.