A tiny structure on the leaf of a cannabis plant appears as a fairy-tale tree adorned with purple bubbles for leaves. A green crab spider, which could comfortably sit on a kernel of corn, seems to train four of its eight eyes directly on you. Brain tumor cells, colored in vivid green and purple on a black background, look like a moody floral abstract. Capturing the smallest elements of our world in dazzling detail—and celebrating the science behind them—has been a hallmark of the Nikon Small World Photomicrography Competition for 50 years. Nikon Instruments Inc. announced the 2024 competition winners today, but really, we’re all winners when it comes to viewing these gasp-worthy works of art and labors of the lab.
This year’s top winning image has an added bonus—it could one day save your life. The ground-breaking image of mouse brain tumor cells took Augusta University’s Bruno Cisterna and Eric Vitriol months of trial and error to create, and shows the cells’ architecture in unprecedented detail. Information gleaned from the image on how specific cell structures function and break down could one day lead to more effective treatments for a host of neurodegenerative diseases, including ALS.
Other notable images that got the Nikon nod included what appears to be an extraterrestrial pugilist (it’s actually the “snout” of a palm weevil) and, the winner of our hearts, a cross-section of a fern stem that looks more like Jabba the Hutt, or maybe Grimace after a rough night, than a piece of plant.
The Nikon Small World judges selected 88 images to honor from the thousands submitted. Here are some of our favorites from the official Top 20, honorable mentions, and images of distinction.
