title: Time-domain fluorescence-guided diffuse optical tomography based on the third-order simplified harmonics approximation.
abstract: Extensive efforts have been made to integrate diffuse optical tomography (DOT) with other imaging modalities, such as magnetic-resonance imaging and x-ray computerized tomography, for its performance improvement. However, the experimental apparatus is in general intricate and costly due to adoption of the physically distinct radiation regimes. In this study, a time-domain fluorescence-guided DOT methodology that incorporates a priori localization information provided by diffuse fluorescence tomography (DFT) is investigated in an attempt to optimize recovery of the optical property distributions. The methodology is based on a specifically designed multichannel time-correlated single-photon-counting DOT/DFT system as well as a featured-data image reconstruction scheme that is developed within the framework of the generalized pulse spectrum technique and employs the third-order simplified harmonics approximation to the radiative transfer equation as the forward model. We have validated the methodology using phantom experiments and demonstrated that, with the guidance of fluorescence a priori, the quantitativeness and spatial resolution of the recovered optical target can be considerably improved in terms of the absorption and scattering images.
authors.affiliation: College of Precision Instruments and Optoelectronics Engineering, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China.
authors.forename: Wenjuan
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Xi
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Yi
authors.forename: Jiao
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Linhui
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Xin
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Limin
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Zhongxing
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Huijuan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.forename: Feng
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gao
mesh_terms: D004867:Equipment Design; D019544:Equipment Failure Analysis; D007089:Image Enhancement / Q000295:instrumentation*; D008856:Microscopy, Fluorescence / Q000295:instrumentation*; D019047:Phantoms, Imaging; D010783:Photometry / Q000295:instrumentation*; D041622:Tomography, Optical / Q000295:instrumentation*