Jie Tian

Wenxiang Cong

Jing Bai

Ming Jiang

Wei Liang

Recent Advances in Molecular Imaging

Purpose. To evaluate the diagnosis value of integrated positron emission tomography and computed tomography (PET/CT) with lung masses, this study emphasized the correlation between tumor size and maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax) in selected regions of interest (ROI) of lung masses. Material and Methods. A retrospective analysis was performed on 85 patients with solid pulmonary lesions, all verified by pathology. The morphology, edge (speculated margins and lobule), size, density of pulmonary masses, and on-chest CT images were reviewed. The SUVmax in ROI of pulmonary masses was calculated. Results. Among the 85 patients with lung masses, 59 patients presented with pulmonary malignant neoplasm and 26 patients with benign lesions. The sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy were 89.8%, 61.5%, 81.2%, respectively, for PET measurement only, 88.1%, 65.4%, 81.2% for CT only, and 96.6%, 80.8%, 91.8% for PET/CT. The size of pulmonary malignant neoplasm in the 59 patients was apparently correlated with the ROI's SUVmax (<mml:math id="E1" xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mrow><mml:mi>r</mml:mi><mml:mo>=</mml:mo><mml:mn>0.617</mml:mn></mml:mrow></mml:math>, <mml:math id="E2" xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mi>P</mml:mi><mml:mo>&lt;</mml:mo><mml:mn>.001</mml:mn></mml:math>). However, the size of pulmonary benign mass in the 26 patients was not correlated with the SUVmax. Conclusion. PET/CT is of greater value in characterization of lung masses than PET and CT performed separately. The examination of lung tumor can be further specified by the correlation between the size of pulmonary malignant neoplasm and the ROI's SUVmax.

Guangming Lu

Zhongqiu Wang

Hong Zhu

Linfeng Chang

Yingxin Chen

Jiang Wu

Yane Zhao

The Advantage of PET and CT Integration in Examination of Lung Tumors

We present an approach based on the improved Levenberg
                                                    Marquardt (LM) algorithm of backpropagation (BP) neural network to estimate the 
                                                    light source position in bioluminescent imaging. For solving the forward problem, the
                                                    table-based random sampling algorithm (TBRS), a fast Monte Carlo simulation method
                                                    we developed before, is employed here. Result shows that BP is an effective method to
                                                    position the light source.

Zhun Xu

Xiaolei Song

Xiaomeng Zhang

A Monte-Carlo-Based Network Method for Source Positioning in Bioluminescence Tomography

Segmentation of molecular images is a difficult task due to the low signal-to-noise ratio of images.
A novel two-dimensional fuzzy C-means (2DFCM) algorithm is proposed for the molecular image
segmentation. The 2DFCM algorithm is composed of three stages. The first stage is the noise
suppression by utilizing a method combining a Gaussian noise filter and anisotropic diffusion
techniques. The second stage is the texture energy characterization using a Gabor wavelet method.
The third stage is introducing spatial constraints provided by the denoising data and the textural
information into the two-dimensional fuzzy clustering. The incorporation of intensity and textural
information allows the 2DFCM algorithm to produce satisfactory segmentation results for images
corrupted by noise (outliers) and intensity variations. The 2DFCM can achieve <mml:math id="E1" xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mrow><mml:mn>0.96</mml:mn><mml:mo>±</mml:mo><mml:mn>0.03</mml:mn></mml:mrow></mml:math> segmentation accuracy for synthetic images under different imaging conditions. Experimental results on a real molecular image also show the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm.

Jinhua Yu

Yuanyuan Wang

Molecular Image Segmentation Based on  Improved Fuzzy Clustering

To verify the influence of a priori information on the nonuniqueness problem of bioluminescence tomography (BLT), the multimodality imaging fusion based BLT experiment is performed by multiview noncontact detection mode, which incorporates the anatomical information obtained by the microCT scanner and the background optical properties based on diffuse reflectance measurements. In the reconstruction procedure, the utilization of adaptive finite element methods (FEMs) and a priori permissible source region refines the reconstructed results and improves numerical robustness and efficiency. The comparison between the absence and employment of a priori information shows that multimodality imaging fusion is essential to quantitative BLT reconstruction.

Yujie Lv

Ge Wang

Experimental Study on Bioluminescence Tomography with Multimodality Fusion

A novel confocal optical system design and a dual laser confocal scanner have been developed to meet the requirements of highly sensitive detection of biomolecules on microarray chips, which is characterized by a long working distance (<mml:math id="E1" xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mrow><mml:msub><mml:mi>w</mml:mi><mml:mi>d</mml:mi></mml:msub><mml:mo>&gt;</mml:mo><mml:mn>3.0</mml:mn><mml:mtext> </mml:mtext></mml:mrow></mml:math>mm), high numerical aperture (<mml:math id="E2" xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mrow><mml:mtext>NA</mml:mtext><mml:mo>=</mml:mo><mml:mn>0.72</mml:mn></mml:mrow></mml:math>), and only 3 materials and 7 lenses used. This confocal optical system has a high scanning resolution, an excellent contrast and signal-to-noise ratio, and an efficiency of collected fluorescence of more than 2-fold better than that of other commercial confocal biochip scanners. The scanner is as equally good for the molecular imaging detection of enclosed biochips as for the detection of biological samples on a slide surface covered with a cover-slip glass. Some applications of gene and protein imagings using the dual laser confocal scanner are described.

Guoliang Huang

Shukuan Xu

Jiang Zhu

Cheng Deng

Zhonghua Dong

Yang Yang

Xiaoyong Yang

Xianhua Wang

Guofan Jin

Development of a Confocal Optical System Design for Molecular Imaging Applications of Biochip

The diffusion approximation of the Boltzmann transport equation is most commonly used for describing the photon propagation in turbid media. It produces satisfactory results in weakly absorbing and highly scattering media, but the accuracy lessens with the decreasing albedo. In this paper, we presented a method to improve the accuracy of the diffusion model in strongly absorbing media by adjusting the optical parameters. Genetic algorithm-based optimization tool is used to find the optimal optical parameters. The diffusion model behaves more closely to the physical model with the actual optical parameters substituted by the optimized optical parameters. The effectiveness of the proposed technique was demonstrated by the numerical experiments using the Monte Carlo
simulation data as measurements.

Alexander X. Cong

Haiou Shen

Improving the Accuracy of the Diffusion Model in Highly Absorbing Media

Timely imaging and accurate interpretation of cerebral ischemia are required to
identify patients who might benefit from more aggressive therapy, and nuclear medicine
offers a noninvasive method for demonstrating cerebral ischemia. Three
nitroimidazole-based thioflavin-T derivatives, <mml:math id="E1" xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mi>N</mml:mi></mml:math>-[4-(benzothiazol-2-yl)phenyl]-3-(4-nitroimidazole-1-yl) propanamide (4NPBTA), <mml:math id="E2" xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mi>N</mml:mi></mml:math>-[4-(benzothiazol-2-yl)phenyl]-3-(4-nitroimidazole-1-yl)-<mml:math id="E3" xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mi>N</mml:mi></mml:math>-methylpropanamide (4NPBTA-1), and
<mml:math id="E4" xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mi>N</mml:mi></mml:math>-[4-(benzothiazol-2-yl)phenyl]-3-(2-nitroimidazole-1-yl) propanamide (2NPBTA), were
radioiodinated and evaluated as possible cerebral ischemia markers. In normal mice,
these compounds showed good permeation of the intact blood-brain barrier (BBB), high
initial brain uptake, and rapid washout. In gerbil stroke models that had been subjected
to right common carotid artery ligation to produce cerebral ischemia, [<mml:math id="E5" xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mrow><mml:mtext>I</mml:mtext><mml:mrow><mml:mn>131</mml:mn></mml:mrow></mml:mrow></mml:math>]2NPBTA,
uptake in the right cerebral hemisphere decreased more slowly than that of the left, and
the right/left hemisphere uptake ratios increased with time. Also, the right/left
hemisphere uptake ratios correlated positively with the severity of the stroke. The results showed that 
[<mml:math id="E6" xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mrow><mml:mtext>I</mml:mtext><mml:mrow><mml:mn>131</mml:mn></mml:mrow></mml:mrow></mml:math>]2NPBTA had a specific location in the cerebral ischemic tissue. This represented a first step in finding new drugs and might provide a possible cerebral
ischemic marker.

Taiwei Chu

Zejun Li

Xinqi Liu

Xiangyun Wang

In Vivo Evaluation of the Nitroimidazole-Based Thioflavin-T Derivatives as Cerebral Ischemia Markers

Conjugate gradient method is verified to be efficient for nonlinear optimization problems of large-dimension data. In this paper, a penalized linear and nonlinear combined conjugate gradient method for the reconstruction of fluorescence molecular tomography (FMT) is presented. The algorithm combines the linear conjugate gradient method and the nonlinear conjugate gradient method together based on a restart strategy, in order to take advantage of the two kinds of conjugate gradient methods and compensate for the disadvantages. A quadratic penalty method is adopted to gain a nonnegative constraint and reduce the illposedness of the problem. Simulation studies show that the presented algorithm is accurate, stable, and fast. It has a better performance than the conventional conjugate gradient-based reconstruction algorithms. It offers an effective approach to reconstruct fluorochrome information for FMT.

Shang Shang

Hongkai Wang

Jaclyn Lau

A Penalized Linear and Nonlinear Combined Conjugate Gradient Method for the Reconstruction of Fluorescence Molecular Tomography

We have synthesized and characterized gold nanoparticles (spheres and rods) with optical extinction bands within
    the “optical imaging window.” The intense plasmon resonant driven absorption and scattering peaks of these nanoparticles
    make them suitable as contrast agents for optical imaging techniques. Further, we have conjugated these gold nanoparticles
    to a mouse monoclonal antibody specific to HER2 overexpressing SKBR3 breast carcinoma cells. The bioconjugation
    protocol uses noncovalent modes of binding based on a combination of electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions of
    the antibody and the gold surface. We discuss various aspects of the synthesis and bioconjugation protocols and the
    characterization results of the functionalized nanoparticles. Some proposed applications of these potential molecular
    probes in the field of biomedical imaging are also discussed.

Raja Gopal Rayavarapu

Wilma Petersen

Constantin Ungureanu

Janine N. Post

Ton G. van Leeuwen

Srirang Manohar

Synthesis and Bioconjugation of Gold Nanoparticles as Potential Molecular Probes for Light-Based Imaging Techniques

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International Journal of Biomedical Imaging aims to promote research and development of biomedical imaging by publishing high-quality research articles and reviews in this rapidly growing interdisciplinary field.

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International Journal of Biomedical Imaging

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International Journal of Biomedical Imaging

Recent Advances in Molecular Imaging

Recent Advances in Molecular Imaging

Articles

Recent Advances in Molecular Imaging

The Advantage of PET and CT Integration in Examination of Lung Tumors

A Monte-Carlo-Based Network Method for Source Positioning in Bioluminescence Tomography

Molecular Image Segmentation Based on Improved Fuzzy Clustering

Experimental Study on Bioluminescence Tomography with Multimodality Fusion

Development of a Confocal Optical System Design for Molecular Imaging Applications of Biochip

Improving the Accuracy of the Diffusion Model in Highly Absorbing Media

In Vivo Evaluation of the Nitroimidazole-Based Thioflavin-T Derivatives as Cerebral Ischemia Markers

A Penalized Linear and Nonlinear Combined Conjugate Gradient Method for the Reconstruction of Fluorescence Molecular Tomography

Synthesis and Bioconjugation of Gold Nanoparticles as Potential Molecular Probes for Light-Based Imaging Techniques