Mueller matrix analysis of a biologically sourced engineered tissue construct as polarimetric phantom

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Optics
• Tissue Engineering
• Biophysics

Background:

• Assessing biological tissue polarimetric properties is challenging due to complex structures.
• Conventional polarimetric phantoms are often oversimplified, lacking biological relevance.
• Bridging the gap between non-biological phantoms and native tissues is crucial for accurate optical measurements.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate a synthesized, engineered tissue construct as a novel phantom for mimicking collagenous tissue polarimetric properties.
• To assess the suitability of this construct for polarimetric imaging applications.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a fibroblast-derived, engineered tissue construct as a polarimetric phantom.
• Performed polarimetry measurements using Mueller matrix decomposition and transformation.
• Analyzed scalar polarimetric parameters, including linear retardance and circular depolarization.
• Employed second-harmonic generation (SHG) imaging for collagen fiber organization analysis.

Main Results:

• Identified linear retardance and circular depolarization as sensitive parameters to culture time and growth factor treatment.
• Observed accelerated tissue growth with growth factor addition, indicated by polarimetric changes.
• Found collagen fiber alignment increased with culture time but was unaffected by growth factor treatment.

Conclusions:

• The engineered tissue construct effectively mimics polarimetric properties of native collagenous tissues.
• Demonstrated tunability of polarimetric response with culture time and growth factor treatment.
• This construct serves as a valuable, controlled modular optical phantom for polarimetric techniques.