Indian scientists produce most detailed 3D atlas of the human brainstem

Indian scientists at IIT Madras have created the world's most detailed 3D atlas of the human brainstem at cellular resolution, combining over 500 tissue sections from different life stages to identify more than 200 clusters of brain cells and nerve pathways. The atlas, called Anchor, uses high-resolution microscope imaging to map this vital but poorly understood brain region that controls critical functions like breathing, heartbeat, and sleep. This breakthrough fills a major gap in neuroscience by providing an unprecedented digital map that links whole-brain imaging to individual nerve cells.