In vivo near-infrared fluorescence three-dimensional positioning system with binocular stereovision

Fluorescence is a powerful tool for in-vivo imaging in living animals. The traditional in-vivo fluorescence imaging equipment is based on single-view two-dimensional imaging systems. However, they cannot meet the needs for accurate positioning during modern scientific research. A near-infrared in-vivo fluorescence imaging system is demonstrated, which has the capability of deep source signal detecting and three-dimensional positioning. A three-dimensional coordinates computing (TDCP) method including a preprocess algorithm is presented based on binocular stereo vision theory, to figure out the solution for diffusive nature of light in tissue and the emission spectra overlap of fluorescent labels. This algorithm is validated to be efficient to extract targets from multispectral images and determine the spot center of biological interests. Further data analysis indicates that this TDCP method could be used in three-dimensional positioning of the fluorescent target in small animals. The study also suggests that the combination of a large power laser and deep cooling charge-coupled device will provide an attractive approach for fluorescent detection from deep sources. This work demonstrates the potential of binocular stereo vision theory for three-dimensional positioning for living animal in-vivo imaging.