Laser Ablation Tomography for Rapid 3D Tissue Imaging and Analysis

Abstract

Laser ablation tomography (LATscan) produces 3D tissue models at micron-scale resolution within a few minutes, being amenable to high-throughput applications. RGB images obtained from LATscan allow for enhanced and accurate feature segmentation and quantification. The technology uses an ultrafast, ultraviolet pulsed laser to continually ablate a sample as it is fed into the laser ablation plane. The ultrafast nature of the laser pushes the process into being athermal, minimizing structural damage to the material being imaged. The surfaces are imaged at the ablation plane. Precise motion control allows for sub-micron separation between consecutive images. The ablation results in color images due to the ultraviolet laser inducing multi-spectral fluorescence. The LATscan system can also be programmed to allow for co-registration of cross-sections under different lighting conditions. The images are then stacked, further processed and reconstructed into volume renderings with a voxel size that can go down to 0.2 µm3 for further analysis and virtual dissection. Image processing allows for the 3D visualization and quantification of desired anatomy. LATscan has been successfully applied in the fields of plant science, entomology and materials science. It shows great promise for biomedical imaging and tissue analysis, and this paper presents a few results from the LATscan imaging of murine tissue. Various murine organs have been imaged, including the gut, kidney, and brain (inside the skull). The imaging and analysis combined have the potential to provide pathologists, researchers and diagnosticians with insights and solutions not available to them before.