REAL-TIME IMAGING
Dynamic Imaging of Cells Accompanying Cancer Achieved in Mice
Neoplasms contain a microenvironment of multiple other cell types that exist alongside the carcinoma cells. Termed stromal cells, they include such cells as fibroblasts, lymphocytes, dendritic cells, and macrophages. These elements combine with extracellular factors, such as growth factor collagen, and oxygen, to form a milieu that evolves along with the carcinoma cells and influences tumor growth. A recent study sought to image and assess these parallel elements, with the authors developing and using multicolor imaging techniques within a live mouse. As published in Disease Models & Mechanisms and reported in Science, the authors described designing a spinning disk confocal microscope that achieved image acquisition times of 17 and 33 milliseconds for 512 x 512 and 1024 x 1024 pixel images, respectively. Led by researchers from the University of California, San Francisco, the study typically collected 32,400 images in a 12-hour period, then documented the location and movement of stromal cells and oxygen’s effect upon them.
Conclusion: A novel in vivo imaging technique affords high-resolution, four-color, prolonged, real-time imaging of cells that accompany cancer.
MRI & CT PHOTOGRAPHY
Radiologist Wins Lennart Nilsson Award for Scientific Photography
The journal Nature recently reported that radiologist Anders Persson of Sweden has won the Lennart Nilsson Award for scientific photography, citing his stunning computer-enhanced 3D images made using new techniques in MRI and CT. Der. Persson was quoted as saying that technical research should benefit the patient, and that he wanted to show precise and colorful details to achieve that end. He discussed the utility of imaging in forensic medicine, including the performance of virtual autopsies. Such post-mortem exams can allow discovery of facts not appreciable in conventional autopsies, such as gas in wounds or small metal particles under the skin. Persson is currently working on several new facets of medical imaging, including multi-energy CT to visualize the body’s chemical constitution.
Conclusion: The Lennart Nilsson Award for scientific photography has been awarded to Swedish radiologist Anders Persson.
MRI: ACCURATE TEMPERATURE
MRI Pulsing Sequences Yield Accurate Temperature Imaging
Temperature plays an integral role in medicine. Its change can reflect metabolism, immune function, and cancer. For example, digital infared thermal imaging for breast cancer detection was recently reported to show high sensitivity and negative predictive value, depending on the method used. The current and developing arsenal of various disease therapies includes hyperthermic treatments and thermally sensitive agents that can selectively release drugs based on heat range. Noting that temperature is a fundamental quality of matter that proves extremely difficult to measure noninvasively below an object’s surface, researchers sought to image it in a broad range of environments with magnetic resonance. As reported recently in Science, researchers at Princeton and Duke Universities have reported accurate temperature imaging with MRI, using a new pulsing method, and obtained in vivo mouse images.
Conclusion: Newly developed MRI pulsing sequences can achieve rapid and accurate internal temperature images.
Research and reporting by Margaret D. Phillips, M.D.
Reviewer and publisher: Stephen J. Pomeranz, M.D.
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