基于滤波反投影算法的血管内光声图像重建

将目前在光声断层（PAT）成像中得到广泛应用的滤波反投影（FBP）重建算法应用到血管内光声（IVPA）成像中,提出一种简单快速的二维图像重建方法。首先,对组织产生的光声信号进行滤波、逆卷积和时域一阶求导的预处理;然后,针对IVPA在血管腔内封闭成像的特殊性,采用权重法将预处理后的光声信号数据对导管以外的成像区域沿弧线进行反投影,得到成像平面内每个网格点处的初始光声压。最后,得到反映血管壁组织结构形态的横截面灰阶图像。对仿真血管模型的实验表明,采用所提出的方法重建IVPA图像的结构,相似性指标（SSIM）可达到 0.571 7。合理选择滤波函数、滤波截止频率以及测量位置数,可以提高IVPA重建图像的质量;对光声信号进行时域一阶求导处理,能有效地突出重建图像中的组织结构信息。该方法为后续图像重建算法的优化奠定基础。     

光声技术在癌症检测和非侵犯性诊断中的应用（英文）

目的：探讨光声技术的原理、优势及癌症临床应用前景。方法：根据肿瘤发展过程,相继介绍光声技术在肿瘤检测过程中的应用。结果：光声技术对光散射生物组织-肿瘤,能够进行无损深层探测及成像,具有其他成像技术所无法比拟的优势。结论：光声技术是一种新的发展中的成像模式,应用于生物医药并获得解剖和功能信息。它对于了解肿瘤生长、转移,癌症诊断和评测治疗功效都有着潜在的重大用途。     

模拟微血管的光声成像技术研究

目的：为了实现较深层组织内微血管的光声成像。方法：采用波长532nm、重复频率10Hz的脉冲激光作为激励源,宽带非聚焦针状探头以圆周扫描的方式采集时域光声信号,二维光学吸收分布图像由时域后向投影算法重建,以线扩展函数为依据测量系统的成像空间分辨率。结果：成像空间分辨率0．1mm,模拟微血管网络的光声图像与原始样品完全吻合。结论：对组织内癌症病灶的早期诊断具有较大的意义。     

生物组织非接触光声层析成像EI北大核心CSCD

在光声成像中,超声信号通常需要采用接触传感器探测,这使其在很多应用中受到很大的限制,如脑功能成像。为了替代接触探测器实现非接触的光声层析成像(NCPAT),激光干涉技术被用于远程获取超声信号。本文搭建了非接触光声层析成像系统,系统采用波长为532 nm、能量17.5 m J/cm^2的激光作为光声激发源,激光外差干涉仪作为光声信号的远程探测系统,对实际生物组织模型进行了旋转几何的光声信号探测。利用激光外差干涉仪探测到的光声信号,进行反投影算法的图像重建。实验结果表明在具有组织散射特性的模型中,激光外差干涉仪在2.25 MHz带宽(峰值下15 d B强度的信号宽带)下,NCPAT成像系统可以识别500μm直径的黑色微球,并实现了在强散射介质中多层结构的光学对比成像。这将扩展光声和超声在体成像在生物医学领域的应用范围。     

生物组织非接触光声层析成像

在光声成像中,超声信号通常需要采用接触传感器探测,这使其在很多应用中受到很大的限制,如脑功能成像。为了替代接触探测器实现非接触的光声层析成像(NCPAT),激光干涉技术被用于远程获取超声信号。本文搭建了非接触光声层析成像系统,系统采用波长为532 nm、能量17.5 m J/cm~2的激光作为光声激发源,激光外差干涉仪作为光声信号的远程探测系统,对实际生物组织模型进行了旋转几何的光声信号探测。利用激光外差干涉仪探测到的光声信号,进行反投影算法的图像重建。实验结果表明在具有组织散射特性的模型中,激光外差干涉仪在2.25 MHz带宽(峰值下15 d B强度的信号宽带)下,NCPAT成像系统可以识别500μm直径的黑色微球,并实现了在强散射介质中多层结构的光学对比成像。这将扩展光声和超声在体成像在生物医学领域的应用范围。     

基于时域后向投影的光声谱成像系统研究

光声谱成像是一种新的生物组织成像方法,它结合光学成像和超声成像的特点,可提供高分辨率和对比度的图像。采用波长532nm、重复频率10Hz的脉冲激光作为激励源,宽带PVDF非聚焦超声探测器频率响应范围为200kHz～15MHz,探测器以圆周扫描的方式采集样品的时域光声信号,并采用时域后向投影算法重建样品内部的二维光学吸收分布图像。实验表明,系统成像的空间分辨率小于1mm,重建的图像与原始样品完全吻合。     

基于固有模态分解和深度学习的抑郁症脑电信号分类分析

以采集到的抑郁症患者和正常人的脑电信号为基础,采用固有模态分解算法对原始信号去噪处理,通过卷积神经网络对抑郁症患者和正常人进行分类分析。首先通过脑电信号的采集实验,采集15位抑郁症患者和15位正常人对照组Fp1的静息态脑电信号;之后对采集到的静息态脑电进行去噪处理,脑电去噪处理主要包括固有模态分解算法对原始信号的分解获得不同层次的IMF分量,对IMF分量进行频域分析,通过硬阈值的方法剔除原始信号中的噪声信号;最后采用卷积神经网络对抑郁症患者和正常人对照组进行二值分类,结果相较于传统的特征提取-机器学习算法,分类准确率明显提高。     

Chirp-Z变换频谱细化倒谱定征生物软组织散射子平均间距的研究

用信号处理方法,提取生物软组织声散射特征,从而对生物组是进行鉴别,是超声医学的基础研究一直关注的重要课题,生物软组织的超声散射主要由组织内部的散射子引起,散射子平均间距与组织的微结构特征相关。我们分析和总结了一般基于FFT倒谱,AR倒谱等算法波动性较大、分辨率不高产生的原因,提出利用Chirp-Z变换频谱得到细化倒谱,在超声检测中估计生物软组织散射子平均间距及其变化的新方法,并利用该方法对仿体和生物软组织的回波信号进行了分析。结果表明:该方法是软组织的超声散射信号分析和散射子平均间距定征的一种有效方法。     

磁声耦合成像声信号检测的实验研究

对磁声耦合成像进行原理性验证实验研究.从不同的几何模型出发,分别建立了圆线圈、矩形线圈和三角形铜线圈模型作为成像目标,置于稳恒磁场中,同时对其施加正弦脉冲信号,用中心频率为1 MHz的声传感器检测铜线圈在磁声耦合作用下产生的声信号,在不同位置、不同角度检测产生的声信号并进行分析处理.实验结果表明,超声传感器采集的声信号...     

基于宽带检测放疗X-光光声效应仿体实验

目的:搭建一个宽带检测的单振元光声信号采集系统采集仿体的光声信号,探讨不同介质X-光光声信号差异和人体切片体模光声信号的去噪方法。方法:带宽为0.10~1.00 MHz的单振元宽带换能器垂直于X-光照射方向在样本一侧采集超声信号,超声信号通过34 d B带宽为0.05~5.00 MHz的前置放大器放大后由数字采集卡(采样率=40.00 MHz)采集并存储到计算机中。首先通过光声信号在整体包络、信号强度、振荡趋势、上下包络所围成的面积等方面差异对4种仿体进行分析。另外对人体切片模体的X-光声信号在有限长单位冲激响应低通滤波的基础上进行小波平移不变量去噪与只对模体光声信号进行小波平移不变量去噪,比较这两种去噪方式的效果。结果:不同仿体光声信号有差异,这种差异与物质的成分和比例相关。对人体切片体模光声信号通过Db3小波基进行5层分解的小波平移不变量去噪,比有限长单位冲激响应低通滤波能更好地提高信号信噪比。结论:利用6 MV医用直线加速器的短脉冲X-光光声信号对介质的差异性及小波去噪有助于提高其对放疗的研究与应用价值。     

Motion clustering for deblurring multispectral optoacoustic tomography images of the mouse heart

Cardiac imaging in small animals is a valuable tool in basic biological research and drug discovery for cardiovascular disease. Multispectral optoacoustic tomography (MSOT) represents an emerging imaging modality capable of visualizing specific tissue chromophores at high resolution and deep in tissues in vivo by separating their spectral signatures. Whereas single-wavelength images can be acquired by multielement ultrasound detection in real-time imaging, using multiple wavelengths at separate times can lead to image blurring due to motion during acquisition. Therefore, MSOT imaging of the heart results in degraded resolution because of the heartbeat. In this work, we applied a clustering algorithm, k-means, to automatically separate a sequence of single-pulse images at multiple excitation wavelengths into clusters corresponding to different stages of the cardiac cycle. We then performed spectral unmixing on each cluster to obtain images of tissue intrinsic chromophores at different cardiac stages, showing reduced sensitivity to motion compared to signal averaging without clustering. We found that myocardium images of improved resolution and contrast can be achieved using MSOT motion clustering correction. The correction method presented could be generally applied to other MSOT imaging applications prone to motion artifacts, for example, by respiration and heartbeat.     

Target detection and quantification using a hybrid hand-held diffuse optical tomography and photoacoustic tomography system

We present a photoacoustic tomography-guided diffuse optical tomography approach using a hand-held probe for detection and characterization of deeply-seated targets embedded in a turbid medium. Diffuse optical tomography guided by coregistered ultrasound, MRI, and x ray has demonstrated a great clinical potential to overcome lesion location uncertainty and to improve light quantification accuracy. However, due to the different contrast mechanisms, some lesions may not be detectable by a nonoptical modality but yet have high optical contrast. Photoacoustic tomography utilizes a short-pulsed laser beam to diffusively penetrate into tissue. Upon absorption of the light by the target, photoacoustic waves are generated and used to reconstruct, at ultrasound resolution, the optical absorption distribution that reveals optical contrast. However, the robustness of optical property quantification of targets by photoacoustic tomography is complicated because of the wide range of ultrasound transducer sensitivity, the orientation and shape of the targets relative to the ultrasound array, and the uniformity of the laser beam. We show in this paper that the relative optical absorption map provided by photoacoustic tomography can potentially guide the diffuse optical tomography to accurately reconstruct target absorption maps.     

Photoacoustic tomography of foreign bodies in soft biological tissue

In detecting small foreign bodies in soft biological tissue, ultrasound imaging suffers from poor sensitivity (52.6%) and specificity (47.2%). Hence, alternative imaging methods are needed. Photoacoustic (PA) imaging takes advantage of strong optical absorption contrast and high ultrasonic resolution. A PA imaging system is employed to detect foreign bodies in biological tissues. To achieve deep penetration, we use near-infrared light ranging from 750 to 800 nm and a 5-MHz spherically focused ultrasonic transducer. PA images were obtained from various targets including glass, wood, cloth, plastic, and metal embedded more than 1 cm deep in chicken tissue. The locations and sizes of the targets from the PA images agreed well with those of the actual samples. Spectroscopic PA imaging was also performed on the objects. These results suggest that PA imaging can potentially be a useful intraoperative imaging tool to identify foreign bodies.     

Quantitative spatially resolved measurement of tissue chromophore concentrations using photoacoustic spectroscopy: application to the measurement of blood oxygenation and haemoglobin concentration

A new approach based on pulsed photoacoustic spectroscopy for non-invasively quantifying tissue chromophore concentrations with high spatial resolution has been developed. The technique is applicable to the quantification of tissue chromophores such as oxyhaemoglobin (HbO(2)) and deoxyhaemoglobin (HHb) for the measurement of physiological parameters such as blood oxygen saturation (SO(2)) and total haemoglobin concentration. It can also be used to quantify the local accumulation of targeted contrast agents used in photoacoustic molecular imaging. The technique employs a model-based inversion scheme to recover the chromophore concentrations from photoacoustic measurements. This comprises a numerical forward model of the detected time-dependent photoacoustic signal that incorporates a multiwavelength diffusion-based finite element light propagation model to describe the light transport and a time-domain acoustic model to describe the generation, propagation and detection of the photoacoustic wave. The forward model is then inverted by iteratively fitting it to measurements of photoacoustic signals acquired at different wavelengths to recover the chromophore concentrations. To validate this approach, photoacoustic signals were generated in a tissue phantom using nanosecond laser pulses between 740 nm and 1040 nm. The tissue phantom comprised a suspension of intralipid, blood and a near-infrared dye in which three tubes were immersed. Blood at physiological haemoglobin concentrations and oxygen saturation levels ranging from 2% to 100% was circulated through the tubes. The signal amplitude from different temporal sections of the detected photoacoustic waveforms was plotted as a function of wavelength and the forward model fitted to these data to recover the concentrations of HbO(2) and HHb, total haemoglobin concentration and SO(2). The performance was found to compare favourably to that of a laboratory CO-oximeter with measurement resolutions of +/-3.8 g l(-1) (+/-58 microM) and +/-4.4 g l(-1) (+/-68 microM) for the HbO(2) and HHb concentrations respectively and +/-4% for SO(2) with an accuracy in the latter in the range -6%-+7%.     

Deep reflection-mode photoacoustic imaging of biological tissue

A reflection-mode photoacoustic (PA) imaging system was designed and built to image deep structures in biological tissues. We chose near-infrared laser pulses of 804-nm wavelength for PA excitation to achieve deep penetration. To minimize unwanted surface signals, we adopted dark-field ring-shaped illumination. This imaging system employing a 5-MHz spherically focused ultrasonic transducer provides penetration up to 38 mm in chicken breast tissue. At the 19-mm depth, the axial resolution is 144 microm and the transverse resolution is 560 microm. Internal organs of small animals were imaged clearly.     

Dual-mode imaging with radiolabeled gold nanorods

Many nanoparticle contrast agents have difficulties with deep tissue and near-bone imaging due to limited penetration of visible photons in the body and mineralized tissues. We are looking into the possibility of mediating this problem while retaining the capabilities of the high spatial resolution associated with optical imaging. As such, the potential combination of emerging photoacoustic imaging and nuclear imaging in monitoring of antirheumatic drug delivery by using a newly developed dual-modality contrast agent is investigated. The contrast agent is composed of gold nanorods (GNRs) conjugated to the tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α) antibody and is subsequently radiolabeled by (125)I. ELISA experiments designed to test TNF-α binding are performed to prove the specificity and biological activity of the radiolabeled conjugated contrast agent. Photoacoustic and nuclear imaging are performed to visualize the distribution of GNRs in articular tissues of the rat tail joints in situ. Findings from the two imaging modalities correspond well with each other in all experiments. Our system can image GNRs down to a concentration of 10 pM in biological tissues and with a radioactive label of 5 μCi. This study demonstrates the potential of combining photoacoustic and nuclear imaging modalities through one targeted contrast agent for noninvasive monitoring of drug delivery as well as deep and mineralized tissue imaging.     

Measurement of burn depths in rats using multiwavelength photoacoustic depth profiling

We perform measurement of photoacoustic (PA) signals for burned skin in rats in the spectral range of 500 to 650 nm. The wavelength dependence of PA signal amplitude shows characteristics similar to those of the absorption spectrum of hemoglobin, suggesting that the PA signal originates from blood in the uninjured skin tissue under the injured tissue layer. High-contrast signals are obtained in the spectral range of 532 to 580 nm. At 550 nm, a PA detector is scanned on the wounds and PA tomograms are obtained. The tomograms clearly show the zones of stasis, demonstrating that a 2-D PA measurement is useful for burn depth assessment.     

Indocyanine-green-embedded PEBBLEs as a contrast agent for photoacoustic imaging

Nanoparticles 100 nm in diameter containing indocyanine green (ICG) have been developed as a contrast agent for photoacoustic (PA) imaging based on (photonic explorers for biomedical use by biologically localized embedding PEBBLE) technology using organically modified silicate (ormosil) as a matrix. ICG is an FDA-approved dye with strong optical absorption in the near-infrared (NIR) region, where light can penetrate deepest into biological tissue. A photoacoustic imaging system was used to study image contrast as a function of PEBBLE concentration in phantom objects. ICG-embedded ormosil PEBBLEs showed improved stability in aqueous solution compared with free ICG dye. The particles were conjugated with HER-2 antibody for breast cancer and prostate cancer cell targeting. Initial in vitro characterization shows high contrast and high efficiency for binding to prostate cancer cells. ICG can also be used as a photosensitizer (generating toxic oxygen by illumination) for photodynamic therapy. We have measured the photosensitization capability of ICG-embedded ormosil nanoparticles. This feature can be utilized to combine detection and therapeutic functions in a single agent.     

Non-invasive imaging of epileptic seizures in vivo using photoacoustic tomography

Non-invasive laser-induced photoacoustic tomography (PAT) is an emerging imaging modality that has the potential to image the dynamic function of the brain due to its unique ability of imaging biological tissues with high optical contrast and ultrasound resolution. Here we report the first application of our finite-element-based PAT for imaging of epileptic seizures in an animal model. In vivo photoacoustic images were obtained in rats with focal seizures induced by microinjection of bicuculline, a GABA(A) antagonist, into the neocortex. The seizure focus was accurately localized by PAT as confirmed with gold-standard electroencephalogram (EEG). Compared to the existing neuroimaging modalities, PAT not only has the unprecedented advantage of high spatial and temporal resolution in a single imaging modality, but also is portable and low in cost, making it possible to bring brain imaging to the bedside.