Pigment pas de deux puts stripes on zebrafish
COLOR DANCE Zebrafish owe their stripes to the coordinated movement of at least two types of pigment-producing cells.
Read Later
Twitter
Facebook
Reddit
Google+Thierry Marysael/Flickr
Scientists have long puzzled over how animals’ stripes, spots, dots, blazes and other color patterns arise. One of the most popular theories was proposed in 1952 by British mathematician Alan Turing, who showed that two chemicals spreading across a surface could spontaneously react to create patterns. By varying how chemicals diffuse and react under different conditions, Turing could reproduce many patterns seen in nature (SN: 7/17/10, p. 28).
Note: To comment, Science News subscribing members must now establish a separate login relationship with Disqus. Click the Disqus icon below, enter your e-mail and click “forgot password” to reset your password. You may also log into Disqus using Facebook, Twitter or Google.
