The May issue of The American Journal of Pathology reports that Dr. Derek Magee, and his team at the University of Leeds have developed a unique, easy-to-use system for three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction and examination of tissues at microscopic resolution. The system, which uses conventional histopathological methods, is able to considerably enhance the study of normal and disease processes, and in particular those that involve structural changes.

Leading researcher, Dr. Darren Treanor of the University of Leeds and the Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust in the United Kingdom declares:

 

"The use of 3D imaging technology to study structure, function, and disease manifestations has been limited because of low resolution, and the time and difficulty associated with acquiring large numbers of images with a microscope. Our system can integrate tissue micro-architecture and cellular morphology on large tissue samples. It can be used by technical or medical staff in a histopathology laboratory without input from computing specialists."

The system can be used on any stained tissue section and generate high-resolution digital images, as well as 3D tissue reconstructions at a cellular resolution level by using automated virtual slide scanners. Based on a general image based-registration algorithm, the system uses an integrated system that once the slides are sectioned, stained, and mounted, requires minimal manual intervention.

The virtual slide scanners automatically digitize the tissue, whilst the software communicates with the imaging software to align the images and produce a visible image in one integrated package. The user has the option to get a higher resolution image of microscopic features by manually selecting a region, zooming in and re-registering the area.

The system has been used on more than 300 separate 3D volumes from eight different tissue types, using a total of 5,500 virtual slides, which describe cases that illustrate the possible applications of the system. For instance, a 3D volume visualization of a mouse embryo provides anatomical and expression data and creates a 'virtual archive' of 3D transgenic models, whilst a 3D volume rendering of human liver sections that contain a deposit of metastatic colorectal carcinoma next to a blood vessel could provide insight into tumor vasculature and its response to anti-angiogenic agents, and a 3D visualization of a hepatitis C infected cirrhotic human liver shows the software's ability to provide information on disease development and aid diagnosis.

Dr. Treanor concludes:

 

"Many fields, including tumor biology, embryology, and cardiovascular disease could benefit from correlation of structure and function in three dimensions, but getting high quality 3D reconstructions has always been difficult. We have demonstrated that our software is accurate and robust enough to use without significant computer science input. This system provides the opportunity for increasing use of 3D histopathology as a routine research

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