Researchers have devised a new imaging technique for peering deep inside the brains of mice to monitor neurons in real-time. The method, which, unlike standard approaches, allows investigators to track the same location in the brain for months, should offer new insights into cancer, neurological disease and trauma-induced conditions.
With the new method, “imaging is possible over a very long time without damaging the region of interest,” said Juergen Jung, a microscopist at Stanford University in California and a co-author of the study published online this week in Nature Medicine, in a press release.
The technology relies on miniature glass tubes, about half the width of a grain of rice, that are implanted into the deep brain of anaesthetized mice. A tiny optical instrument called a microendoscope is then threaded inside the tube, allowing researchers to return to exactly the same brain location — down to the level of an individual cell — repeatedly over weeks or months.
As a proof of principle, the Stanford team tracked the growth of glioma brain cancer cells. The following video shows a three-dimensional stack of 220 images each taken about 3 micrometers apart to reveal blood vessel growth in the hippocampus of wild-type mice.
Late last year, the US Institute of Medicine released a report stating that research claiming any benefits from vitamin D beyond building strong bones is “inconsistent and inconclusive.” Although inert vitamin D supplements have yet to prove their worth, new research is increasingly showing that active analogs of the molecule can help fight a number of diseases, including cancer and chronic kidney failure.
Researchers 
New York City’s burgeoning bioscience industry got a boost on 18 November when the New York Academy of Sciences launched a new network to connect private investors with fledgling life science companies looking for funding. The network, which is comprised of angel investors—wealthy individuals who risk their own money—will finance companies working to commercialize drugs, medical devices and other healthcare products. The goal is to bridge the funding gap between academic technology transfer offices and late-stage investors such as big corporations and venture capital firms.
With the tagline “Made by humans, scored by Nature,” the video game 
When Phil Willis, a former school headmaster turned politician, landed a seat on the UK government’s Science and Technology Committee in 2005, he found a way to make his mark as a nonscientist by obsessively asking for evidence from researchers. Now in the House of Lords, he continues to advise the government on biomedicine, among other topics. Willis recently found a new cause to champion as well, the Association of Medical Research Charities (