September 2018
Spotlight Summary by Marco Endrizzi
Visualizing the 3D cytoarchitecture of the human cochlea in an intact temporal bone using synchrotron radiation phase contrast imaging
The team of Iyer, Zhu, Gasilov, Ladak, Agrawal, and Stankovic reports on the visualization of the three-dimensional cytoarchitecture of the human cochlea in an intact temporal bone. They achieved their impressive results by means of synchrotron radiation, at the Biomedical Imaging and Therapy (BMIT) 05ID-2 beamline at Canadian Light Source Inc. in Saskatoon, SK, Canada. Synchrotrons are large-scale facilities that provide extremely powerful X-ray beams, allowing for cutting-edge experiments to be performed in ideal conditions.
The team presents three-dimensional renderings of intact and unstained specimens where the epithelium's cellular composition is depicted in high detail. Phase contrast imaging techniques made it possible to combine high-resolution, deep-tissue penetration and preservation of contrast amongst minute features. Notably, the epithelium cells were visualized within an encasing bone structure and without requiring contrast agents. Further analysis revealed that healthy and damaged epithelium could be distinguished by way of synchrotron-based phase-contrast X-ray imaging.
Future development of this work points towards optimizing the acquisition parameters for intracochlear evaluation and vestibular organ assessment, pushing the spatial resolution even further and looking into ways of reducing the radiation dose.
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The team presents three-dimensional renderings of intact and unstained specimens where the epithelium's cellular composition is depicted in high detail. Phase contrast imaging techniques made it possible to combine high-resolution, deep-tissue penetration and preservation of contrast amongst minute features. Notably, the epithelium cells were visualized within an encasing bone structure and without requiring contrast agents. Further analysis revealed that healthy and damaged epithelium could be distinguished by way of synchrotron-based phase-contrast X-ray imaging.
Future development of this work points towards optimizing the acquisition parameters for intracochlear evaluation and vestibular organ assessment, pushing the spatial resolution even further and looking into ways of reducing the radiation dose.
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Article Information
Visualizing the 3D cytoarchitecture of the human cochlea in an intact temporal bone using synchrotron radiation phase contrast imaging
Janani S. Iyer, Ning Zhu, Sergei Gasilov, Hanif M. Ladak, Sumit K. Agrawal, and Konstantina M. Stankovic
Biomed. Opt. Express 9(8) 3757-3767 (2018) View: Abstract | HTML | PDF