OptiJ: Open-source optical projection tomography of large organ samples

Area of Science:

• Biomedical imaging
• Microscopy
• Optical Projection Tomography

Background:

• Optical Projection Tomography (OPT) is crucial for 3D phenotyping of transparent mesoscopic samples.
• Existing OPT systems can be costly and complex, limiting broader adoption.
• Visible light is used in OPT to visualize the 3D morphology of large transparent samples.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present OptiJ, a low-cost, open-source Optical Projection Tomography system.
• To enable wider application of OPT for imaging large transparent specimens.
• To provide a modular and accessible framework for advanced microscopy.

Main Methods:

• Developed OptiJ using off-the-shelf optical components and an ImageJ plugin.
• Integrated novel correction routines for illumination and sample jitter.
• Implemented CPU/GPU accelerated reconstruction for large datasets.

Main Results:

• Achieved imaging of large transparent specimens up to 13mm tall and 8mm deep with 50µm resolution.
• Successfully imaged and reconstructed cleared lung lobes from adult mice.
• Demonstrated a modular hardware and software design for easy implementation.

Conclusions:

• OptiJ offers a cost-effective and open-source solution for high-resolution 3D imaging of large biological samples.
• The system's modularity facilitates further developments in open microscopy.
• OptiJ enhances biomedical phenotyping by making advanced OPT accessible.