title: Four-dimensional imaging of murine subpleural alveoli using high-speed optical coherence tomography.
abstract: The investigation of lung dynamics on alveolar scale is crucial for the understanding and treatment of lung diseases, such as acute lung injury and ventilator induced lung injury, and to promote the development of protective ventilation strategies. One approach to this is the establishment of numerical simulations of lung tissue mechanics where detailed knowledge about three-dimensional alveolar structure changes during the ventilation cycle is required. We suggest four-dimensional optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging as a promising modality for visualizing the structural dynamics of single alveoli in subpleural lung tissue with high temporal resolution using a mouse model. A high-speed OCT setup based on Fourier domain mode locked laser technology facilitated the acquisition of alveolar structures without noticeable motion artifacts at a rate of 17 three-dimensional stacks per ventilation cycle. The four-dimensional information, acquired in one single ventilation cycle, allowed calculating the volume-pressure curve and the alveolar compliance for single alveoli.
authors.affiliation: Dresden University of Technology, Faculty of Medicine Carl Gustav Carus, Department Clinical Sensoring and Monitoring, Fetscherstraße 74, 01307 Dresden, Germany. lars.kirsten@tu-dresden.de
authors.forename: Lars
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Kirsten
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gaertner
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Schnabel
authors.forename: Sven
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Meissner
authors.forename: Edmund
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Koch
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005583:Fourier Analysis; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D021621:Imaging, Three-Dimensional / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D051379:Mice; D055620:Optical Phenomena; D010994:Pleura / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000502:physiology; D011650:Pulmonary Alveoli / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000502:physiology; D012143:Respiratory Physiological Phenomena; D041623:Tomography, Optical Coherence / Q000379:methods* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data