Label-free structural photoacoustic tomography of intact mouse brain

Lei Li; Jun Xia; Guo Li; Alejandro Garcia-Uribe; Lihong V. Wang

doi:10.1117/12.2077236

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11 March 2015 Label-free structural photoacoustic tomography of intact mouse brain

Lei Li, Jun Xia, Guo Li, Alejandro Garcia-Uribe, Lihong V. Wang

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Proceedings Volume 9323, Photons Plus Ultrasound: Imaging and Sensing 2015; 93230M (2015) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2077236
Event: SPIE BiOS, 2015, San Francisco, California, United States

Abstract

Capitalizing on endogenous hemoglobin contrast, photoacoustic computed tomography (PACT), a deep-tissue highresolution imaging modality, has drawn increasing interest in neuro-imaging. However, most existing studies are limited to functional imaging on the cortical surface, and the deep-brain structural imaging capability of PACT has never been demonstrated. Here, we explicitly studied the limiting factors of deep-brain PACT imaging. We found that the skull distorted the acoustic signal and blood suppressed the structural contrast from other chromophores. When the two effects are mitigated, PACT can provide high-resolution label-free structural imaging through the entire mouse brain. With 100 μm in-plane resolution, we can clearly identify major structures of the brain, and the image quality is comparable to that of magnetic resonance microscopy. Spectral PACT studies indicate that structural contrasts mainly originate from cytochrome and lipid. The feasibility of imaging the structure of the brain in vivo has also been discussed. Our results demonstrate that PACT is a promising modality for both structural and functional brain imaging.

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Lei Li, Jun Xia, Guo Li, Alejandro Garcia-Uribe, and Lihong V. Wang "Label-free structural photoacoustic tomography of intact mouse brain", Proc. SPIE 9323, Photons Plus Ultrasound: Imaging and Sensing 2015, 93230M (11 March 2015); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2077236

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