Charting the Developing Human Heart--2025 Judges' Award Winner, Honorable Mention. In Art of Science

Caption: A cellular map of the human developing heart reveals how it forms and functions.
Participant category: Faculty
Department: Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Center for Epigenomics (C4E)

Researchers at the Center for Epigenomics (C4E) use multiplexed error-robust fluorescence in situ hybridization, or MERFISH — a spatial transcriptomics technique — to study how different cell types form the human heart. This image shows a molecular map of gene expression, with each color representing a distinct cell type. Understanding these patterns helps scientists investigate congenital heart defects with the goal of improving treatments.