Photoacoustic imaging of brain perfusion on albino rats by using evans blue as contrast agent

The visualization of the brain vascular system could be of great importance for studying its functionality and for diagnosing possible disorders. In this paper we report the use of photoacoustics for imaging brain perfusion on Albino rats in vivo and post mortem. The measurements on the animals were direct on the skin surface. The blood perfusion on skull cartilage was imaged and 2D slices were constructed by using a beamforming algorithm. From the images representation the Interactive Data Language (IDL, Research System Inc.) was used. We also investigated the possibility of using the Evans Blue dye as a substitute of blood for imaging brain structures in vitro. The breakdown of the dye under pulsed laser irradiation was studied and the energy under which this effect occurs was calculated for the wavelength of 532 nm.