Noncontact full-angle fluorescence molecular tomography system based on rotary mirrors

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Medical Imaging
• Optical Imaging

Background:

• Fluorescence molecular tomography (FMT) is crucial for in vivo molecular imaging.
• Existing FMT systems often require specimen rotation or bulky components, limiting practicality.
• Achieving full-angle imaging is essential for accurate tomographic reconstruction.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce a novel noncontact fluorescence molecular tomography system.
• To achieve full-angle imaging capacity using a unique rotary-mirrors-based imaging head.
• To demonstrate a simplified and more practical FMT system design.

Main Methods:

• Designed and implemented a novel imaging head with four plane mirrors on a rotating gantry.
• Enabled 360° illumination and detection without rotating the specimen animal.
• Utilized a compact system, avoiding large light sources and bulky cameras.

Main Results:

• The rotary-mirrors system successfully achieved full-angle fluorescence molecular tomography.
• Demonstrated system performance through physical phantom experiments.
• Verified the system's efficacy in in vivo experiments.

Conclusions:

• The proposed noncontact FMT system offers a practical solution for full-angle molecular imaging.
• The rotary-mirrors design significantly reduces system complexity and size.
• This technology has the potential to advance in vivo molecular imaging research.