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Optical coherence tomography spectral analysis for detecting apoptosis in vitro and in vivo
Golnaz Farhat1, Anoja Giles2, Michael C Kolios3
1University of Toronto, Department of Medical Biophysics, Faculty of Medicine, 2075 Bayview Avenue, Toronto M4N 3M5, CanadabSunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Sunnybrook Research Institute, 2075 Bayview Avenue, Toronto M4N 3M5, CanadacSunnybrook Health Sci.
Abstract:
Apoptosis is a form of programmed cell death characterized by a series of predictable morphological changes at the subcellular level, which modify the light-scattering properties of cells. We present a spectroscopic optical coherence tomography (OCT) technique to detect changes in subcellular morphology related to apoptosis in vitro and in vivo. OCT data were acquired from acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cells treated with cisplatin over a 48-h period. The backscatter spectrum of the OCT signal acquired from the cell samples was characterized by calculating its in vitro integrated backscatter (IB) and spectral slope (SS). The IB increased with treatment duration, while the SS decreased, with the most significant changes occurring after 24 to 48 h of treatment. These changes coincided with striking morphological transformations in the cells and their nuclei. Similar trends in the spectral parameter values were observed in vivo in solid tumors grown from AML cells in mice, which were treated with chemotherapy and radiation. Our results provide a strong foundation from which future experiments may be designed to further understand the effect of cellular morphology and kinetics of apoptosis on the OCT signal and demonstrate the feasibility of using this technique in vivo.
Insights
Spectroscopic optical coherence tomography (OCT) detects cellular changes during apoptosis. This technique shows promise for monitoring programmed cell death in both laboratory settings and living organisms.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Optics
- Cell Biology
- Cancer Research
Background:
- Apoptosis, or programmed cell death, involves distinct subcellular morphological changes.
- These morphological alterations affect cellular light-scattering properties.
- Non-invasive methods are needed to monitor apoptosis in real-time.
Purpose of the Study:
- To present a spectroscopic optical coherence tomography (OCT) technique for detecting apoptosis-related morphological changes.
- To evaluate the technique's efficacy in vitro and in vivo.
- To correlate OCT signal changes with cellular morphology during apoptosis.
Main Methods:
- Acquisition of OCT data from acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cells treated with cisplatin.
- Characterization of the OCT backscatter spectrum using integrated backscatter (IB) and spectral slope (SS).
- In vivo studies using solid tumors grown from AML cells in mice, treated with chemotherapy and radiation.
Main Results:
- In vitro: Integrated backscatter (IB) increased, and spectral slope (SS) decreased over 48 hours of cisplatin treatment.
- Significant spectral parameter changes correlated with observed morphological transformations in AML cells and nuclei.
- In vivo: Similar trends in IB and SS were observed in treated solid tumors in mice.
Conclusions:
- Spectroscopic OCT can detect and quantify morphological changes associated with apoptosis.
- The technique demonstrates feasibility for in vivo monitoring of apoptosis in cancer treatment.
- Further research can explore the kinetics of apoptosis and OCT signal interactions.
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