Imaging the lung: the old ways and the new.
Our understanding of lung biology can be greatly enhanced by studying embryonic and postnatal lung development, and the perturbations which occur during disease. Imaging techniques provide a unique insight into these processes. A wide variety of imaging techniques have been used to study the lungs at various stages of development and disease, ranging from histological stains to more novel techniques such as single plane illumination microscopy (SPIM), intravital microscopy (IVM), and micro-computed tomography (micro-CT). Each of these tools can be used to elicit different information about the lungs and each has its own unique advantages and disadvantages for pulmonary research. In this review we assess some of the most commonly-used and novel imaging techniques available for lung research today.
Inflammation, Repair and Development Section, National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London, London, UK.
Thanushiyan
T
Poobalasingam
Inflammation, Repair and Development Section, National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London, London, UK.
David
D
Salman
Inflammation, Repair and Development Section, National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London, London, UK.
Henry
H
Li
Inflammation, Repair and Development Section, National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London, London, UK.|Adult Intensive Care Unit, Royal Brompton Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK.
Joana
J
Alçada
Inflammation, Repair and Development Section, National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London, London, UK. c.dean@imperial.ac.uk.|Mammalian Genetics Unit, MRC Harwell, Oxfordshire, UK.
Charlotte H
CH
Dean
D003952:Diagnostic Imaging / Q000379:methods* / Q000639:trends*; D006801:Humans; D008168:Lung / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*