September 26, 2025

Balancing a Fluid Situation
By Dena Procaccini
NIH-funded scientists created a 3D map of kidney nerves and vascular components at an unprecedented scale. Understanding kidney structure and function at this level of detail may provide new clues toward future treatments for conditions that affect kidney development or cause kidney-related disease.

Historian Remembers NIH’s Role in the Asilomar Conference
By Eric Bock
Fifty years ago, a group of scientists, journalists and lawyers gathered at the Asilomar Conference Center on California’s Monterey peninsula to discuss potential biohazards and regulation of recombinant DNA research. What resulted from the meeting was a set of NIH guidelines that ensured scientists could conduct this research under federal oversight.
OACU Hosts Aspiring Science Writers
By Amber Snyder
Youth science writers visited NIH recently for a day of learning.
Hartzell Emphasizes Importance of Caring in Healthcare Leadership
By Amber Snyder
Attention, leaders in health care: “Connecting to our roots as healers and caring for others is the key to leading effectively,” says Dr. Joshua Hartzell.

On the Cover

3D 5x light sheet fluorescence microscopy image of adult human kidney cortex. Vessels are red, glomeruli are cyan and collecting ducts are in purple. A selection of the neural network that was isolated among several glomerular communities is shown by the yellow nerves, with the white lines representing glomerulus-to-glomerulus neural connections. At the center, in blue spheres, are ‘mother glomeruli’, which exist as hub points in the overall network.

Liam McLaughlin, Sanjay Jain Lab, Washington University at St. Louis