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H2020Individual fellowship2018–2020

MSIOAM · Multifocal structured illumination optoacoustic microscopy

Horizon 2020 — Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions

Duration
2018-02-01 → 2020-01-31
EU contribution
€171,461
Participants
2
Scheme
MSCA-IF-EF-ST

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Results in brief

Multifocal structured illumination optoacoustic microscopy

Optoacoustic (photoacoustic) imaging is a powerful bio-imaging modality associated with the intrinsic combination of ultrasound and light-related advantages and thus can provide a unique set of capabilities for biomedical applications, such as high spatio-temporal resolution, deep penetration, spectrally enriched imaging contrast and resolution scalability. It can achieve optical resolution optoacoustic microscopy (OR-OAM) at superficial depths and can be adapted for optoacoustic tomography (OAT) with ultrasonic resolution. For conventional OR-OAM, a single focused laser spot in conjunction with a single ultrasound detection element is employed for optoacoustic signal generation and detection, resulting in a slow imaging speed as far as concerned with acquisition of volumetric (3D) data, which greatly restricts its usage in applications involving dynamic biological processes. In this MSCA project, we aim to break the bottleneck of OR-OAM by developing a new approach using multifocal structured illumination in conjunction with a spherical ultrasonic array detection to achieve a highly scalable high-speed optoacoustic imaging scheme to enable imaging samples at multiple penetration scales by gradually exchanging microscopic optical resolution in superficial tissues with ultrasonic resolution at diffuse (macroscopic) depths. The overall objective is to achieve real-time volumetric optoacoustic imaging in both optical and acoustic resolution modes. For this, several objectives need to be accomplished. Firstly, a multifocal structured illumination system with a beamsplitting gratings will be designed and fabricated. Secondly, optoacoustic signal unmixing and reconstruction methods for the spherical ultrasonic array detection geometry will be investigated. Thirdly, calibration methods for the proposed system will be investigated. Last but not least, high-speed volumetric optoacoustic imaging with the proposed method in living tissues will be demonstrated.

Data: CORDIS, © European Union

Project objective

Optoacoustic imaging is a highly scalable and versatile method that can be used for optical resolution microscopy (OR-OAM) at superficial depth yet can be adapted for tomographic imaging with ultrasonic resolution at centimeter penetration scale. However, the imaging speed of OR-OAM is slow as far as concerned with acquisition of volumetric data, which greatly restricts its usage in applications involving dynamic biological processes. In this MSCA project, we propose to develop a new approach using multifocal structured illumination in conjunction with a spherical ultrasonic array detection to achieve real-time volumetric optoacoustic imaging in both optical and acoustic resolution modes. Several challenges are to be addressed to reach these objectives. Firstly, a multifocal structured illumination system with two identical beamsplitting gratings will be designed and fabricated. Secondly, optoacoustic signal unmixing method for the spherical ultrasonic array detection geometry will be developed and image reconstruction algorithms based on the unmixed signals devised. Thirdly, calibration methods for the proposed system will be investigated. Finally, real-time volumetric optoacoustic imaging will be demonstrated in living animals With the proposed method, real-time volumetric imaging at multiple penetration scales can be accomplished, making it possible to study dynamic functional, kinetic and metabolism parameters at the cellular, organ and whole organism level. By opening new possibilities for visualization of multi-scale dynamics not attainable with existing imaging modalities, the new method will broadly affect both pre-clinical and clinical imaging in the fields of in vivo cell tracking, targeted molecular imaging, studies of tumor dynamics and neovascularization, functional brain imaging.

Original text from CORDIS.

Participants

  • UNIVERSITAT ZURICH · ZurichCoordinatorSwitzerland
  • HELMHOLTZ ZENTRUM MUENCHEN DEUTSCHES FORSCHUNGSZENTRUM FUER GESUNDHEIT UND UMWELT GMBH · NeuherbergGermany

Links

Data: CORDIS, © European Union