Diffuse fluorescence fiber probe for in vivo detection of circulating cells

Area of Science:

• Biomedical optics
• In vivo imaging
• Cancer research

Background:

• Accurate enumeration of rare circulating cells is crucial for understanding cancer metastasis.
• Existing technologies face challenges with signal-to-noise ratio and motion artifacts in vivo.
• There is a need for improved methods for detecting circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in small animal models.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a novel fiber-based optical probe for in vivo fluorescence detection of labeled circulating cells.
• To enhance the signal-to-noise ratio and minimize motion artifacts in circulating cell detection.
• To assess the probe's performance in a flow phantom and in a live animal model.

Main Methods:

• A fiber-based optical probe utilizing diffuse reflectance configuration was designed.
• The probe was tested in vitro using a tissue-mimicking flow phantom.
• In vivo validation was performed in nude mice injected with fluorescently labeled multiple myeloma cells.

Main Results:

• The developed probe demonstrated a 10 dB improvement in detection signal-to-noise ratio compared to previous designs.
• The probe design significantly reduced motion artifacts caused by animal respiration.
• Successful detection of fluorescently labeled multiple myeloma cells in vivo was achieved.

Conclusions:

• The novel fiber-optic probe offers enhanced capabilities for in vivo detection of rare circulating cells.
• This technology has potential applications in cancer metastasis research and other fields requiring cell enumeration.
• The improved performance suggests feasibility for use in larger animals and different anatomical locations.