Name: dual raster-scanning photoacoustic small-animal imager for vascular visualization
Uploaded: 2020-07-15T15:00:00
Description: Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Dual Raster-Scanning Photoacoustic Small-Animal Imager for Vascular Visualization at JoVE.com

The authors would like acknowledge the financial support from National Natural Science Foundation of China (61822505; 11774101; 61627827; 81630046), The Science and Technology Planning Project of Guangdong Province, China (2015B020233016), and The Science and Technology Program of Guangzhou (No. 2019020001).

All animal experiments were performed in compliance with guidelines provided by the institutional animal care and use committee of South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.
1. System Setup
<ol>
	<li>Optical path (Figure 1)
	<ol>
		<li>Use a 532 nm pulse laser as the system laser source. Set the repetition rate of the laser to 10 kHz, the output energy to 100% and the trigger setting to external trigger using a user-defined program.</li>
		<li>Couple the l...

<ol>
	<li>Li, L., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Single-impulse+panoramic+photoacoustic+computed+tomography+of+small-animal+whole-body+dynamics+at+high+spatiotemporal+resolution.">Single-impulse panoramic photoacoustic computed tomography of small-animal whole-body dynamics at high spatiotemporal resolution.</a> Nature Biomedical Engineering. 1 (5), 0071 (2017).</li><li>Jeon, S., Kim, J., Lee, D., Baik, J. W., Kim, C. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Review+on+practical+photoacoustic+microscopy.">Review on practical photoacoustic microscopy.</a> Photoacoustics. 15, 100141 (2019).</li><li>Baik, J. W., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Super+wide-field+photoacoustic+microscopy+of+animal+and+humans+in+vivo.">Super wide-field photoacoustic microscopy of animal and humans in vivo.</a> IEEE Transactions on Medical Imaging. 39 (4), 975-984 (2019).</li><li>Omar, M., Aguirre, J., Ntziachristos, V. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Optoacoustic+mesoscopy+for+biomedicine.">Optoacoustic mesoscopy for biomedicine.</a> Nature Biomedical Engineering. 3 (5), 354-370 (2019).</li><li>Lin, L., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Single-breath-hold+photoacoustic+computed+tomography+of+the+breast.">Single-breath-hold photoacoustic computed tomography of the breast.</a> Nature Communications. 9 (1), 2352 (2018).</li><li>Yang, F., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Wide-field+monitoring+and+real-time+local+recoding+microvascular+networks+on+small+animals+with+a+dual-raster-scanned+photoacoustic+microscope.">Wide-field monitoring and real-time local recoding microvascular networks on small animals with a dual-raster-scanned photoacoustic microscope.</a> Journal of Biophotonics. 13 (6), 202000022 (2020).</li><li>Sun, J., Zhou, Q., Yang, S. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Label-free+photoacoustic+imaging+guided+sclerotherapy+for+vascular+malformations:+a+feasibility+study.">Label-free photoacoustic imaging guided sclerotherapy for vascular malformations: a feasibility study.</a> Optics Express. 26 (4), 4967-4978 (2018).</li><li>Xu, D., Yang, S., Wang, Y., Gu, Y., Xing, D. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Noninvasive+and+high-resolving+photoacoustic+dermoscopy+of+human+skin.">Noninvasive and high-resolving photoacoustic dermoscopy of human skin.</a> Biomedical Optics Express. 7 (6), 2095-2102 (2016).</li><li>Zhang, W., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Miniaturized+photoacoustic+probe+for+in+vivo+imaging+of+subcutaneous+microvessels+within+human+skin.">Miniaturized photoacoustic probe for in vivo imaging of subcutaneous microvessels within human skin.</a> Quantitative Imaging in Medicine and Surgery. 9 (5), 807-814 (2019).</li><li>Chen, Q., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Ultracompact+high-resolution+photoacoustic+microscopy.">Ultracompact high-resolution photoacoustic microscopy.</a> Optics Letters. 43 (7), 1615-1618 (2018).</li><li>Lan, B., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=High-speed+widefield+photoacoustic+microscopy+of+small-animal+hemodynamics.">High-speed widefield photoacoustic microscopy of small-animal hemodynamics.</a> Biomedical Optics Express. 9, 4689-4700 (2018).</li><li>Ma, H., Yang, S., Cheng, Z., Xing, D. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Photoacoustic+confocal+dermoscope+with+a+waterless+coupling+and+impedance+matching+opto-sono+probe.">Photoacoustic confocal dermoscope with a waterless coupling and impedance matching opto-sono probe.</a> Optics Letters. 42 (12), 2342-2345 (2017).</li><li>Kang, H., Lee, S. W., Lee, E. S., Kim, S. H., Lee, T. G. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Real-time+GPU-accelerated+processing+and+volumetric+display+for+wide-field+laser-scanning+optical-resolution+photoacoustic+microscopy.">Real-time GPU-accelerated processing and volumetric display for wide-field laser-scanning optical-resolution photoacoustic microscopy.</a> Biomedical Optics Express. 6 (12), 4650-4660 (2015).</li></ol>

Here we presented a dual raster-scanning photoacoustic small-animal imager for noninvasive vascular visualization which was designed and developed to capture the structure of the vasculature and the related dynamic change of blood. The advantage of DRS-PAI is that it integrates the WIM and the RIM into one system, which makes it easier to study vascular dynamic and vascular network structure of small animals. The system can provide high-resolution wide-field vascular visualization and real-time blood dynamics.
<p cla...

In the basic biomedical field, small animals can simulate human physiological function. Therefore, small-animal imaging plays an important role in guiding the research of human homologous diseases and seeking effective treatment1. Photoacoustic imaging (PAI) is a non-invasive imaging technique combining the advantages of optical imaging and ultrasound imaging2. Photoacoustic microscopy (PAM) is a valuable imaging method for basic research of small animal3. PAM can easily obtain high-resolution, deep-penetration, high-specificity and high-contrast images based on optical excitation and ultrasound detection4.
A pulse laser with a specific wavelength is absorbed by endogenous chromophores of tissues. Subsequently, the temperature of the tissue rises, which results in the production of photo-induced ultrasonic waves. The ultrasonic waves can be detected by an ultrasonic transducer. After signal acquisition and image reconstruction, the spatial distribution of the absorber can be obtained5. On the one hand, the visualization of whole-organ vascular network requires a wide field of view. The process of wide-field scanning usually takes a long time to ensure high-resolution6,7,8. On the other hand, observing the hemodynamic activities of small animals requires fast real-time imaging. The real-time imaging is beneficial to study the vital signs of small animals in real time9,10,11. The field of view of real-time imaging is usually sufficiently small to ensure a high update rate. Thus, there is often a tradeoff between achieving a wide field of view and real-time imaging. Previously, two different systems were used for wide-field imaging or real-time imaging, separately.
This work reports a dual raster-scanning photoacoustic imager (DRS-PAI), which integrated wide-field imaging based on a two-dimensional motorized translation stage and real-time imaging based on a two-axis galvanometer scanner. The wide-field imaging mode (WIM) is performed to show vascular morphology. For the real-time imaging mode (RIM), there are currently two functions. First, RIM can provide real-time B-scan images. By measuring the displacement of vasculature along the depth direction, the characteristics of respiration or pulse can be revealed. Second, the RIM can quantitatively measure the specific area in the WIM image. By providing comparable images of local WIM regions, the details of the local change can be accurately revealed. The system designs a flexible transition between wide-field imaging of vascular visualization and real-time imaging of the local dynamic. The system is desirable in basic biomedical research where there is a need for small-animal imaging.

<table>
	<tbody>
		<tr>
			<td>12 bit multi-purpose digitizer</td>
			<td>Spectrum</td>
			<td>M3i.3221</td>
			<td>Data acquisition card</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>A-line collected program</td>
			<td>National Instrument</td>
			<td>LabVIEW</td>
			<td>User-defined program</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Amplifier</td>
			<td>RF Bay</td>
			<td>LNA-650</td>
			<td>Amplifier</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Depilatory Cream</td>
			<td>Veet</td>
			<td>33-II</td>
			<td>Animal depilatory</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Fiberport Coupler</td>
			<td>Thorlab</td>
			<td>PAF-X-7-A</td>
			<td>Fiber Coupler</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Field Programmable Gate Array</td>
			<td>Altera</td>
			<td>Cyclone IV</td>
			<td>Trigger Control</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Fixed Focus Collomation Packages</td>
			<td>Thorlabs</td>
			<td>F240FC-532</td>
			<td>Fiber Collimator</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Foused ultrasonic transducer</td>
			<td>Self-made</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Graphics Processing Unit</td>
			<td>NVIDIA</td>
			<td>GeForce GTX 1060</td>
			<td>Processing data</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Holder</td>
			<td>Self-made</td>
			<td></td>
			<td>Animal fixation</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Laser control program</td>
			<td>National Instrument</td>
			<td>LabVIEW</td>
			<td>User-defined program</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Mice</td>
			<td>Guangdong Medical Laboratory Animal Center</td>
			<td>BALB/c</td>
			<td>Animal Model</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Microscope camera</td>
			<td>Mshot</td>
			<td>MS60</td>
			<td>CCD camera</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Microscope Objective</td>
			<td>Daheng Optics</td>
			<td>GCO-2111</td>
			<td>Objective Lens</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Mirror</td>
			<td>Daheng Optics</td>
			<td>GCC-1011</td>
			<td>Moveable/Fixed Mirror</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Moving Magnet Capacitive Detector Galvanometer Scanner</td>
			<td>Century Sunny</td>
			<td>S8107</td>
			<td>real-time scanner</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Mshot image analysis system</td>
			<td>Mshot</td>
			<td></td>
			<td>Display software</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Normal Saline</td>
			<td>CR DOUBLE-CRANE</td>
			<td>H34023609</td>
			<td>Normal Saline</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Ophthalmic Scissors</td>
			<td>SUJIE</td>
			<td></td>
			<td>Scalp Remove</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Planar ultrasonic transducer</td>
			<td>Self-made</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Plastic Wrap</td>
			<td>HJSJLSL</td>
			<td></td>
			<td>Polyethylene Membrane</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Program Control Software</td>
			<td>National Instrument</td>
			<td>LabVIEW</td>
			<td>User-defined Program</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Pulsed Q-swithched Laser</td>
			<td>Laser-export</td>
			<td>DTL-314QT</td>
			<td>532-nm pulse Laser</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Real-time imaging program</td>
			<td>National Instrument</td>
			<td>LabVIEW</td>
			<td>User-defined program</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Ring-shaped white LED</td>
			<td>Self-made</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Shaver</td>
			<td>Codos</td>
			<td>CP-9200</td>
			<td>Animal Shaver</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Single-Mode Fibers</td>
			<td>Nufern</td>
			<td>460-HP</td>
			<td>Single-mode fiber</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Surgical Blade</td>
			<td>SUJIE</td>
			<td>11</td>
			<td>Blade</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Surgical Scalpel</td>
			<td>SUJIE</td>
			<td>7</td>
			<td>Scalp Remove</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Translation Stage</td>
			<td>Jiancheng Optics</td>
			<td>LS2-25T</td>
			<td>wide-field scanning stage</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Ultrasonic Transducer</td>
			<td>Self-made</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Ultrasound gel</td>
			<td>GUANGGONG PAI</td>
			<td>ZC4252418</td>
			<td>Acoustic Coupling</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Urethane</td>
			<td>Tokyo Chemical Industry</td>
			<td>C0028</td>
			<td>Animal Anestheized</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Water tank</td>
			<td>Self-made</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Wide-field imaging program</td>
			<td>National Instrument</td>
			<td>LabVIEW</td>
			<td>User-defined program</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>XY Translator Mount</td>
			<td>Self-made</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

dual raster-scanning photoacoustic small-animal imager for vascular visualization

Imaging of vascular networks on small animals has played an important role in basic biomedical research. Photoacoustic imaging technology has great potential for application in the imageology of small animals. The wide-field photoacoustic imaging of small animals can provide images with high spatiotemporal resolution, deep penetration, and multiple contrasts. Also, the real-time photoacoustic imaging system is desirable to observe the hemodynamic activities of small-animal vasculature, which can be used to research the dynamic monitoring of small-animal physiological features. Here, a dual-raster-scanning photoacoustic imager is presented, featuring a switchable double-mode imaging function. The wide-field imaging is driven by a two-dimensional motorized translation stage, while the real-time imaging is realized with galvanometers. By setting different parameters and imaging modes, in vivo visualization of small-animal vascular network can be performed. The real-time imaging can be used to observe pulse change and blood flow change of drug-induced, etc. The wide-field imaging can be used to track the growth change of tumor vasculature. These are easy to be adopted in various areas of basic biomedicine research.

The schematic of the DRS-PAI is shown in Figure 1. The system allows flexible and repeatable switching between WIM with RIM. The acquired PA signal is processed quickly to generate PA B-Scan and MAP images. The CCD camera can provide photographs of samples.
All components of the DRS-PAI are integrated and assembled in an imager setup (Figure 2), making it easy to assemble and operate. In the WIM, continuous raster scanning of a two-di...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Dual Raster-Scanning Photoacoustic Small-Animal Imager for Vascular Visualization at JoVE.com

Dual Raster-Scanning Photoacoustic Small-Animal Imager for Vascular Visualization

A dual raster-scanning photoacoustic imager was designed, which integrated wide-field imaging and real-time imaging.

Imaging of vascular networks on small animals has played an important role in basic biomedical research. Photoacoustic imaging technology has great ...

The dual raster-scanning photoacoustic small animal imager can be used to visualize various tissue in vivo and is easily adapted to many biomedical research studies with a need for small animal imaging. To align the system, cover an entire 10 x 10 x 4.4 centimeter water tank with a 10 micron thick polyethylene membrane, and fill the tank with ultra pure water. Place the tank on the working stage and turn on the laser switch.Select the laser control program and reheat the laser for five minutes. Press the on button on the pumping switch and set the laser parameters. Open the laser bevel and select the A-line collected program.Press start to capture a single point signal and to display the amplitude and spectrum of the current A-line signal. Place a blade at the bottom of the water tank and immerse the bottom part of the ultrasonic transducer in the water tank for acoustic coupling. Adjust the position of the Galva and the X Y translator between the ultrasonic transducer and the confocal objective lens to avoid an oscillation signal.Then adjust the height of the working stage to maximize the amplitude of the signal and determine the focus position. After confirming a lack of response to pedal reflex, use a trimmer and depilatory cream to remove the hair from the back, ear, scalp, and abdomen of the anesthetized mouse, and place the mouse onto an 8 x 2.8 x 2 centimeter holder in the prone position. Place ultrasound gel onto the area to be imaged and place the holder onto the working stage.Press start to collect an A-line signal and adjust the position of the Galva XT Translator and working stage to align the region to be imaged with the laser. Then press stop to end the collection. To collect a wide field image, select the wide field imaging mode and name the newly created folder.Under the scanning speed tab set the scanning speed to 20 millimeters per second. The scanning area to 20 x 20 millimeters and the step to 20. When the scanning parameters have been set, click collect to begin scanning.At the end of the acquisition, click stop and return to zero to bring the motor to zero. Pose the laser bevel and set the trigger setting to internal trigger. Press off to stop the pumping switch and select the real-time imaging mode trigger.Connect the real-time imaging mode trigger to the external laser trigger, and turn on the pumping switch. Then set the trigger setting to the external trigger and click exit to exit the wide field imaging mode. To collect a real-time image, initiate the A-line signal collection and open the laser bevel.Align the laser as demonstrated and click stop to end the collection after the alignment. Select the real-time imaging mode and name the newly created folder, click collect to start scanning. When the acquisition is complete, click stop.Then click exit to exit the real-time imaging program. For widefield imaging of the brain vascular systems, select a focused ultrasonic transducer with a central frequency of 25 megahertz, a bandwidth of more than 90%and a focal length of 8 millimeters. Use a scalpel to make a small incision on the lateral side of the cranial temporal top of the mouse and use ophthalmic scissors to cut the scalp around the outer edge of the skull.Compress any bleeding point to achieve homeostasis, and wash the wound with normal saline. Place ultrasound gel onto the exposed skull and initiate A-line signal collection. Click stop to end the collection after the alignment, and select the wide field imaging mode.Name the newly created folder and set the scanning speed to 10 millimeters per second. The scanning area to 10 x 10 millimeters and the step to 10. Click collect to start scanning.At the end of the acquisition click stop. Then click return to zero to return the motor to zero and click exit to exit the wide field imaging program. For dynamic real time imagining, place the mouse in the supine position and place ultrasound gel onto the abdomen.Collect an A-line signal and align the laser as demonstrated. Select real-time imaging mode and name the newly created folder. Then click collect to start scanning.At the end of the acquisition, click stop and exit to exit the real-time imaging program. Here a maximum amplitude projection image of the mouse back acquired in widefield imaging mode can be observed. In this B scan, the mouse back was imaged using the real time imaging mode.Images of the vascular networks of the mouse ear and brain can be obtained using a focused ultrasonic transducer. In this analysis, B scan images of the mouse abdomen could be observed, revealing the presence of a vessel within the 100 micron imaging range. In addition, maximum amplitude projection imaging allows comparison of the depth direction of the mouse abdomen versus time.To obtain optimal quality image, it is essential to achieve a good confocal adjustment of the optical and acoustic focus. The special image processing algorithm can be developed for quantitative analysis and can provide valuable information for early diagnosis and treatment of diseases.

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