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Updated: Jun 22, 2026
Longitudinal Morphological and Physiological Monitoring of Three-dimensional Tumor Spheroids Using Optical Coherence Tomography
Published on: February 9, 2019
Optical coherence tomography of cell dynamics in three-dimensional tissue models
Wei Tan1, Amy L Oldenburg, James J Norman
1Biophotonics Imaging Laboratory, Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA.
Optical coherence tomography (OCT) enables real-time, four-dimensional imaging of dynamic cell behaviors within complex 3D tissue models. This advanced imaging technique provides deep penetration and high resolution for studying cellular processes in tissue engineering and drug discovery.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Imaging
- Tissue Engineering
- Cell Biology
Background:
- Three-dimensional cell-based tissue models are crucial for tissue engineering, drug discovery, and cell biology.
- Advanced imaging is needed to assess dynamic 3D cell behavior in highly-scattering scaffolds.
- Current techniques struggle with deep, real-time imaging of cellular processes in thick tissue constructs.
Purpose of the Study:
- To demonstrate the utility of Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) for quantitative, four-dimensional assessment of cell behavior in 3D tissue models.
- To investigate dynamic cellular processes like migration, proliferation, and cell-material interactions within thick tissue constructs.
- To explore how microenvironmental factors influence cellular dynamics using advanced optical imaging.
Main Methods:
- Utilized Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) for in situ, real-time, cellular-resolution imaging.
- Applied OCT to thick, highly-scattering 3D tissue models.
- Quantitatively analyzed dynamic cell behaviors in four dimensions (3D space + time).
Main Results:
- Demonstrated OCT's capability to evaluate dynamic cell behavior and function quantitatively in 4D.
- Successfully investigated cell processes including chemotaxis migration, proliferation, de-adhesion, and cell-material interactions.
- Achieved deep imaging penetration with high spatial and temporal resolution in 3D tissue models.
Conclusions:
- OCT is a powerful tool for understanding complex biological interactions at the cellular level in 3D.
- This technique offers new insights into how microenvironments affect cellular dynamics.
- OCT advancements are vital for progressing beyond 2D cultures to complex 3D tissue constructs.
