Spatial and temporal identification of cerebral infarctions based on multiphoton microscopic imaging

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Biomedical Imaging
• Pathophysiology

Background:

• Ischemic stroke is a major global cause of death and disability.
• Understanding the spatiotemporal evolution of brain injury is crucial for stroke research.
• Existing methods may not fully capture the dynamic changes in ischemic and perilesional areas.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate multiphoton microscopy (MPM) for imaging brain tissue after middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO).
• To assess the ability of MPM to visualize normal and ischemic brain regions over time.
• To characterize morphological changes in the cortex and striatum following stroke.

Main Methods:

• Middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) model in rodents.
• Multiphoton microscopy (MPM) utilizing two-photon excited fluorescence (TPEF) and second harmonic generation (SHG).
• Imaging at 6, 24, 48, and 72 hours post-MCAO.
• Comparison with hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining.

Main Results:

• MPM successfully differentiated normal brain tissue from ischemic regions.
• MPM revealed dynamic morphological alterations in the cortex and striatum at various time points post-stroke.
• MPM findings correlated well with traditional H&E staining results.

Conclusions:

• Multiphoton microscopy is a capable tool for assessing ischemic stroke-induced brain damage.
• MPM provides spatiotemporal insights into stroke pathophysiology.
• Miniaturization of MPM could lead to its use as a clinical diagnostic and monitoring tool for stroke.