Simultaneous dual molecular contrasts provided by the absorbed photons in photoacoustic microscopy

Integrating photoacoustic microscopy with other imaging technologies for multimodal imaging

As a hybrid optical microscopic imaging technology, photoacoustic microscopy images the optical absorption contrasts and takes advantage of low acoustic scattering of biological tissues to achieve high-resolution anatomical and functional imaging. When combined with other imaging modalities, photoacoustic microscopy-based multimodal technologies can provide complementary contrast mechanisms to reveal complementary information of biological tissues. To achieve intrinsically and precisely registered images in a multimodal photoacoustic microscopy imaging system, either the ultrasonic transducer or the light source can be shared among the different imaging modalities. These technologies are the major focus of this minireview. It also covered the progress of the recently developed penta-modal photoacoustic microscopy imaging system featuring a novel dynamic focusing technique enabled by OCT contour scan.

Towards non-contact photoacoustic imaging [review]

Photoacoustic imaging (PAI) takes advantage of both optical and ultrasound imaging properties to visualize optical absorption with high resolution and contrast. Photoacoustic microscopy (PAM) is usually categorized with all-optical microscopy techniques such as optical coherence tomography or confocal microscopes. Despite offering high sensitivity, novel imaging contrast, and high resolution, PAM is not generally an all-optical imaging method unlike the other microscopy techniques. One of the significant limitations of photoacoustic microscopes arises from their need to be in physical contact with the sample through a coupling media. This physical contact, coupling, or immersion of the sample is undesirable or impractical for many clinical and pre-clinical applications. This also limits the flexibility of photoacoustic techniques to be integrated with other all-optical imaging microscopes for providing complementary imaging contrast. To overcome these limitations, several non-contact photoacoustic signal detection approaches have been proposed. This paper presents a brief overview of current non-contact photoacoustic detection techniques with an emphasis on all-optical detection methods and their associated physical mechanisms.

Optical coherence tomography-guided dynamic focusing for combined optical and mechanical scanning multimodal photoacoustic microscopy

To achieve fast imaging and large field of view (FOV), we improved our multimodal imaging system, which integrated optical resolution photoacoustic microscopy, optical coherence tomography (OCT), and confocal fluorescence microscopy in one platform, by combining optical scanning with mechanical scanning. To ensure good focusing of the objective lens over all the imaged area, we employed OCT-guided dynamic focusing. Different from our previous point-by-point dynamic focusing, we employed an area-by-area focusing adjustment strategy, in which each fast optical scanning area has a fixed focusing depth. We have demonstrated the performance of the system by imaging biological samples ex vivo (plant leaf) and in vivo (mouse ear). The system has achieved uniform resolution in an FOV of 10  mm  ×  10  mm with an imaging time of about 5 min.

The integrated high-resolution reflection-mode photoacoustic and fluorescence confocal microscopy

A dual modality microscopy with the highest imaging resolution reported so far based on reflection-mode photoacoustic and confocal fluorescence is presented in this study. The unique design of the imaging head of the microscope makes it highly convenient for scalable high-resolution imaging by simply switching the optical objectives. The submicron resolution performance of the system is demonstrated via in vivo imaging of zebrafish, normal mouse ear, and a xenograft tumor model inoculated in the mouse ear. The imaging results confirm that the presented dual-modality microscopy imaging system could play a vital role in observing model organism, studying tumor angiogenesis and assessment of antineoplastic drugs.

Imaging retinal melanin: a review of current technologies

The retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) is essential to the health of the retina and the proper functioning of the photoreceptors. The RPE is rich in melanosomes, which contain the pigment melanin. Changes in RPE pigmentation are seen with normal aging and in diseases such as albinism and age-related macular degeneration. However, most techniques used to this day to detect and quantify ocular melanin are performed ex vivo and are destructive to the tissue. There is a need for in vivo imaging of melanin both at the clinical and pre-clinical level to study how pigmentation changes can inform disease progression. In this manuscript, we review in vivo imaging techniques such as fundus photography, fundus reflectometry, near-infrared autofluorescence imaging, photoacoustic imaging, and functional optical coherence tomography that specifically detect melanin in the retina. These methods use different contrast mechanisms to detect melanin and provide images with different resolutions and field-of-views, making them complementary to each other.

Delineating the anatomy of the ciliary body using hybrid optical and photoacoustic imaging

We demonstrate the application of an extended field of view hybrid microscope, integrating distinct optical and photoacoustic (PA) contrast modes, for the precise three-dimensional anatomy delineation of the ciliary body/iris structures in healthy rabbit eyes ex vivo. The glutaraldehyde-induced autofluorescence and the intrinsic PA signals provided by each of the employed imaging modalities were characterized by a high spatial complementarity, offering thus rich morphological information regarding the pars plana and pars plicata ciliary body portions, the iris, as well as, the attached zonule fiber strands. The bimodal microscopy approach presented could find application on studies involving the ocular accommodation mechanism or pathological ciliary body conditions, as a powerful diagnostic technique contributing to the understanding of ocular physiology and function.

Visible-light optical coherence tomography-based multimodal retinal imaging for improvement of fluorescent intensity quantification

We developed a spectral-domain visible-light optical coherence tomography (VIS-OCT) based multimodal imaging technique which can accomplish simultaneous OCT and fluorescence imaging with a single broadband light source. Phantom experiments showed that by using the simultaneously acquired OCT images as a reference, the effect of light attenuation on the intensity of the fluorescent images by materials in front of the fluorescent target can be compensated. This capability of the multimodal imaging technique is of high importance for achieving quantification of the true intensities of autofluorescence (AF) imaging of the retina. We applied the technique in retinal imaging including AF imaging of the retinal pigment epithelium and fluorescein angiography (FA). We successfully demonstrated the effect of compensation on AF and FA images with the simultaneously acquired VIS-OCT images.

Photoacoustic tomography imaging and estimation of oxygen saturation of hemoglobin in ocular tissue of rabbits

This study evaluated in vivo imaging capabilities and safety of qualitative monitoring of oxygen saturation of hemoglobin (sO2) of rabbit ciliary body tissues obtained with acoustic resolution (AR) photoacoustic tomography (PAT). AR PAT was used to collect trans-scleral images from ciliary body vasculature of seven New Zealand White rabbits. The PAT sO2 measurements were obtained under the following conditions: when systemic sO2 as measured by pulse oximetry was between 100% and 99% (level 1); systemic sO2 as measured by pulse oximetry was between 98% and 90% (level 2); and systemic sO2 as measured by pulse oximetry was less than 90% (level 3). Following imaging, histological analysis of ocular tissue was conducted to evaluate for possible structural damage caused by the AR PAT imaging. AR PAT was able to resolve anatomical structures of the anterior segment of the eye, viewed through the cornea or anterior sclera. Histological studies revealed no ocular damage. On average, sO2 values (%) obtained with AR PAT were lower than sO2 values obtained with pulse oximetry (all p < 0.001): 86.28 ± 4.16 versus 99.25 ± 0.28, 84.09 ± 1.81 vs. 95.3 ± 2.6, and 64.49 ± 7.27 vs. 71.15 ± 10.21 for levels 1, 2 and 3 respectively. AR PAT imaging modality is capable of qualitative monitoring for deep tissue sO2 in rabbits. Further studies are needed to validate and modify the AR PAT modality specifically for use in human eyes. Having a safe, non-invasive method of in vivo imaging of sO2 in the anterior segment is important to studies evaluating the role of oxidative damage, hypoxia and ischemia in pathogenesis of ocular diseases.

Isometric multimodal photoacoustic microscopy based on optically transparent micro-ring ultrasonic detection

Photoacoustic microscopy (PAM) is an attractive imaging tool complementary to established optical microscopic modalities by providing additional molecular specificities through imaging optical absorption contrast. While the development of optical resolution photoacoustic microscopy (ORPAM) offers high lateral resolution, the acoustically-determined axial resolution is limited due to the constraint in ultrasonic detection bandwidth. ORPAM with isometric spatial resolution along both axial and lateral direction is yet to be developed. Although recently developed sophisticated optical illumination and reconstruction methods offer improved axial resolution in ORPAM, the image acquisition procedures are rather complicated, limiting their capabilities for high-speed imaging and being easily integrated with established optical microscopic modalities. Here we report an isometric ORPAM based on an optically transparent micro-ring resonator ultrasonic detector and a commercial inverted microscope platform. Owing to the superior spatial resolution and the ease of integrating our ORPAM with established microscopic modalities, single cell imaging with extrinsic fluorescence staining, intrinsic autofluorescence, and optical absorption can be achieved simultaneously. This technique holds promise to greatly improve the accessibility of PAM to the broader biomedical researchers.

In vivo corneal neovascularization imaging by optical-resolution photoacoustic microscopy

Corneal neovascularization leads to blurred vision, thus in vivo visualization is essential for pathological studies in animal models. Photoacoustic (PA) imaging can delineate microvasculature and hemodynamics noninvasively, which is suitable for investigating corneal neovascularization. In this study, we demonstrate in vivo imaging of corneal neovascularization in the mouse eye by optical-resolution photoacoustic microscopy (OR-PAM), where corneal neovascularization is induced by deliberate alkali burn injuries in C57BL6/J inbred mice corneas on the left eye. We used OR-PAM to image five mice with corneal alkali burn injuries; the uninjured eyes (right eye) in these mice are then used as the controls. Corneal images acquired by OR-PAM with and without alkali burn injury are compared, clear signs of corneal neovascularization are present in the OR-PAM images of injured eyes; the OR-PAM results are also confirmed by postmortem fluorescence-labeled confocal microscopy.

Simultaneous viewing of individual cells and ambient microvasculature using optical absorption and fluorescence contrasts

Viewing individual cells and ambient microvasculature simultaneously is crucial for understanding tumor angiogenesis and microenvironments. We developed a confocal fluorescence microscopy (CFM) and photoacoustic microscopy (PAM) dual-modality imaging system that can assess fluorescent contrast and optical absorption contrast in biologic samples simultaneously. After staining tissues with fluorescent dye at an appropriate concentration, each laser pulse can generate not only sufficient fluorescent signals from cells for CFM but also sufficient photoacoustic signals from microvessels for PAM. To explore the potential of this system for diagnosis of bladder cancer, experiments were conducted on a rat bladder model. The CFM image depicts the morphology of individual cells, showing not only large polygonal umbrella cells but also intracellular components. The PAM image acquired at the same time provides complementary information on the microvascular distribution in the bladder wall, ranging from large vessels to capillaries. This device provides an opportunity to realize both histologic assay and microvascular characterization simultaneously. The combination of the information of individual cells and local microvasculature in the bladder offers the capability of envisioning the viability and activeness of these cells and holds promise for more comprehensive study of bladder cancer in vivo.

Photoacoustic Microscopy

Photoacoustic microscopy (PAM) is a hybrid in vivo imaging technique that acoustically detects optical contrast via the photoacoustic effect. Unlike pure optical microscopic techniques, PAM takes advantage of the weak acoustic scattering in tissue and thus breaks through the optical diffusion limit (~1 mm in soft tissue). With its excellent scalability, PAM can provide high-resolution images at desired maximum imaging depths up to a few millimeters. Compared with backscattering-based confocal microscopy and optical coherence tomography, PAM provides absorption contrast instead of scattering contrast. Furthermore, PAM can image more molecules, endogenous or exogenous, at their absorbing wavelengths than fluorescence-based methods, such as wide-field, confocal, and multi-photon microscopy. Most importantly, PAM can simultaneously image anatomical, functional, molecular, flow dynamic and metabolic contrasts in vivo. Focusing on state-of-the-art developments in PAM, this Review discusses the key features of PAM implementations and their applications in biomedical studies.

Laser-scanning photoacoustic microscopy with ultrasonic phased array transducer

In this paper, we report our latest progress on proving the concept that ultrasonic phased array can improve the detection sensitivity and field of view (FOV) in laser-scanning photoacoustic microscopy (LS-PAM). A LS-PAM system with a one-dimensional (1D) ultrasonic phased array was built for the experiments. The 1D phased array transducer consists of 64 active elements with an overall active dimension of 3.2 mm × 2 mm. The system was tested on imaging phantom and mouse ear in vivo. Experiments showed a 15 dB increase of the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) when beamforming was employed compared to the images acquired with each single element. The experimental results demonstrated that ultrasonic phased array can be a better candidate for LS-PAM in high sensitivity applications like ophthalmic imaging.

Photoacoustic ophthalmoscopy for in vivo retinal imaging: current status and prospects

Photoacoustic ophthalmoscopy (PAOM) is a new retinal imaging technology that offers the unique capability to measure optical absorption in the retina. Because PAOM is compatible with optical coherence tomography, scanning laser ophthalmoscopy, and autofluorescence imaging, registered multimodal images can be acquired from a single device at comparable resolution for comprehensive anatomic and functional retinal characterizations. Therefore, PAOM is anticipated to have applications in both research and clinical diagnosis of many blinding diseases. The authors explain the basic principles of the photoacoustic effect and imaging. Then, different types of photoacoustic microscopy are introduced and compared. Finally, the current status of photoacoustic imaging in animal eyes is presented and the prospects of future development of PAOM are suggested.

Photoacoustic tomography: fundamentals, advances and prospects

Optical microscopy has been contributing to the development of life science for more than three centuries. However, due to strong optical scattering in tissue, its in vivo imaging ability has been restricted to studies at superficial depths. Advances in photoacoustic tomography (PAT) now allow multiscale imaging at depths from sub-millimeter to several centimeters, with spatial resolutions from sub-micrometer to sub-millimeter. Because of this high scalability and its unique optical absorption contrast, PAT is capable of performing anatomical, functional, molecular and fluid-dynamic imaging at various system levels, and is playing an increasingly important role in fundamental biological research and clinical practice. This review discusses recent technical progress in PAT and presents corresponding applications. It ends with a discussion of several prospects and their technical challenges.

Simultaneous in vivo imaging of melanin and lipofuscin in the retina with photoacoustic ophthalmoscopy and autofluorescence imaging

We combined photoacoustic ophthalmoscopy (PAOM) with autofluorescence imaging for simultaneous in vivo imaging of dual molecular contrasts in the retina using a single light source. The dual molecular contrasts come from melanin and lipofuscin in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). Melanin and lipofuscin are two types of pigments and are believed to play opposite roles (protective versus exacerbate) in the RPE in the aging process. We have successfully imaged the retina of pigmented and albino rats at different ages. The experimental results showed that multimodal PAOM system can be a potentially powerful tool in the study of age-related degenerative retinal diseases.