Rhesus monkey brain imaging through intact skull with thermoacoustic tomography.
Two-dimensional microwave-induced thermoacoustic tomography (TAT) is applied to imaging the Rhesus monkey brain through the intact skull. To reduce the wavefront distortion caused by the skull, only the low-frequency components of the thermoacoustic signals (< 1 MHz) are used to reconstruct the TAT images. The methods of signal processing and image reconstruction are validated by imaging a lamb kidney. The resolution of the system is found to be 4 mm when we image a 1-month-old monkey head containing inserted needles. We also image the coronal and axial sections of a 7-month-old monkey head. Brain features that are 3 cm deep in the head are imaged clearly. Our results demonstrate that TAT has potential for use in portable, cost-effective imagers for pediatric brains.
Xu
Yuan
Y
Optical Imaging Laboratory, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843-3120, USA.
Wang
Lihong V
LV
D000162:Acoustics; D000465:Algorithms; D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology*; D004453:Echoencephalography / Q000379:methods*; D007089:Image Enhancement / Q000379:methods; D007090:Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D008253:Macaca mulatta; D008872:Microwaves; D013696:Temperature; D013817:Thermography / Q000379:methods*; D041622:Tomography, Optical / Q000379:methods*; D014463:Ultrasonography / Q000379:methods*