False-colour transmission electron micrograph (TEM) showing the bacterium Escherichia coli, in the process of synthesising human Interleukin-2 (IL-2),

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False-colour transmission electron micrograph (TEM) showing the bacterium Escherichia coli, in the process of synthesising human Interleukin-2 (IL-2), a naturally-occuring cancer therapeutic. In this micrograph the pink inclusion body represents the IL-2. E. coli inhabits the human gut, where it is normally harmless. Under certain conditions, however, it may become pathogenic causing infections & diarrhoea. It is widely used in biotechnology & molecular genetics experiments, as here, in the mass production of a useful foreign substance. Magnification: x24, 000 at 6x7cm size.

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Size: 5026px × 3925px
Photo credit: © CNRI/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: ., .coli, bacteria, bacterial, bacteriology, bacterium, coli, electron, engineering, escherichia, genetic, il-2, interleukin-2, micro-organisms, microbe, microbes, microbiology, micrograph, protein, recombinant, tem, transmission