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Lerendegui M, Yan J, Stride E, Dunsby C, Tang MX. Understanding the effects of microbubble concentration on localization accuracy in super-resolution ultrasound imaging. Phys Med Biol 2024; 69:115020. [PMID: 38588678 DOI: 10.1088/1361-6560/ad3c09] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2023] [Accepted: 04/08/2024] [Indexed: 04/10/2024]
Abstract
Super-resolution ultrasound (SRUS) through localising and tracking of microbubbles (MBs) can achieve sub-wavelength resolution for imaging microvascular structure and flow dynamics in deep tissuein vivo. The technique assumes that signals from individual MBs can be isolated and localised accurately, but this assumption starts to break down when the MB concentration increases and the signals from neighbouring MBs start to interfere. The aim of this study is to gain understanding of the effect of MB-MB distance on ultrasound images and their localisation. Ultrasound images of two MBs approaching each other were synthesised by simulating both ultrasound field propagation and nonlinear MB dynamics. Besides the distance between MBs, a range of other influencing factors including MB size, ultrasound frequency, transmit pulse sequence, pulse amplitude and localisation methods were studied. The results show that as two MBs approach each other, the interference fringes can lead to significant and oscillating localisation errors, which are affected by both the MB and imaging parameters. When modelling a clinical linear array probe operating at 6 MHz, localisation errors between 20 and 30μm (∼1/10 wavelength) can be generated when MBs are ∼500μm (2 wavelengths or ∼1.7 times the point spread function (PSF)) away from each other. When modelling a cardiac probe operating at 1.5 MHz, the localisation errors were as high as 200μm (∼1/5 wavelength) even when the MBs were more than 10 wavelengths apart (2.9 times the PSF). For both frequencies, at smaller separation distances, the two MBs were misinterpreted as one MB located in between the two true positions. Cross-correlation or Gaussian fitting methods were found to generate slightly smaller localisation errors than centroiding. In conclusion, caution should be taken when generating and interpreting SRUS images obtained using high agent concentration with MBs separated by less than 1.7 to 3 times the PSF, as significant localisation errors can be generated due to interference between neighbouring MBs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcelo Lerendegui
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Jipeng Yan
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Eleanor Stride
- Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Department of Engineering Science, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | | | - Meng-Xing Tang
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
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Riemer K, Tan Q, Morse S, Bau L, Toulemonde M, Yan J, Zhu J, Wang B, Taylor L, Lerendegui M, Wu Q, Stride E, Dunsby C, Weinberg PD, Tang MX. 3D Acoustic Wave Sparsely Activated Localization Microscopy With Phase Change Contrast Agents. Invest Radiol 2024; 59:379-390. [PMID: 37843819 DOI: 10.1097/rli.0000000000001033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/17/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE The aim of this study is to demonstrate 3-dimensional (3D) acoustic wave sparsely activated localization microscopy (AWSALM) of microvascular flow in vivo using phase change contrast agents (PCCAs). MATERIALS AND METHODS Three-dimensional AWSALM using acoustically activable PCCAs was evaluated on a crossed tube microflow phantom, the kidney of New Zealand White rabbits, and the brain of C57BL/6J mice through intact skull. A mixture of C 3 F 8 and C 4 F 10 low-boiling-point fluorocarbon gas was used to generate PCCAs with an appropriate activation pressure. A multiplexed 8-MHz matrix array connected to a 256-channel ultrasound research platform was used for transmitting activation and imaging ultrasound pulses and recording echoes. The in vitro and in vivo echo data were subsequently beamformed and processed using a set of customized algorithms for generating 3D super-resolution ultrasound images through localizing and tracking activated contrast agents. RESULTS With 3D AWSALM, the acoustic activation of PCCAs can be controlled both spatially and temporally, enabling contrast on demand and capable of revealing 3D microvascular connectivity. The spatial resolution of the 3D AWSALM images measured using Fourier shell correlation is 64 μm, presenting a 9-time improvement compared with the point spread function and 1.5 times compared with half the wavelength. Compared with the microbubble-based approach, more signals were localized in the microvasculature at similar concentrations while retaining sparsity and longer tracks in larger vessels. Transcranial imaging was demonstrated as a proof of principle of PCCA activation in the mouse brain with 3D AWSALM. CONCLUSIONS Three-dimensional AWSALM generates volumetric ultrasound super-resolution microvascular images in vivo with spatiotemporal selectivity and enhanced microvascular penetration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kai Riemer
- From the Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom (K.R., Q.T., S.M., M.T., J.Y., J.Z., B.W., L.T., M.L., P.D.W., M.-X.T.); NDORMS, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom (L.B., Q.W., E.S.); and Department of Physics, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom (C.D.)
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Huang B, Yan J, Morris M, Sinnett V, Somaiah N, Tang MX. Acceleration-Based Kalman Tracking for Super-Resolution Ultrasound Imaging In Vivo. IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON ULTRASONICS, FERROELECTRICS, AND FREQUENCY CONTROL 2023; 70:1739-1748. [PMID: 37871098 PMCID: PMC7615377 DOI: 10.1109/tuffc.2023.3326863] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2023]
Abstract
Super-resolution ultrasound (SRUS) can image microvascular structure and flow at subwave-diffraction resolution based on localizing and tracking microbubbles (MBs). Currently, tracking MBs accurately under limited imaging frame rates and high MB concentrations remains a challenge, especially under the effect of cardiac pulsatility and in highly curved vessels. In this study, an acceleration-incorporated MB motion model is introduced into a Kalman tracking framework. The tracking performance was evaluated using simulated microvasculature with different MB motion parameters, concentrations, and acquisition frame rates, and in vivo human breast tumor US datasets. The simulation results show that the acceleration-based method outperformed the nonacceleration-based method at different levels of acceleration and acquisition frame rates and achieved significant improvement in true positive rate (TPR; up to 11.3%) and false negative rate (FNR; up to 13.2%). The proposed method can also reduce errors in vasculature reconstruction via the acceleration-based nonlinear interpolation, compared with linear interpolation (up to [Formula: see text]). The tracking results from temporally downsampled low frame rate in vivo datasets from human breast tumors show that the proposed method has better MB tracking performance than the baseline method, if using results from the initial high frame data as a reference. Finally, the acceleration estimated from tracking results also provides a spatial speed gradient map that may contain extra valuable diagnostic information.
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Affiliation(s)
- Biao Huang
- Ultrasound Lab for Imaging and Sensing, Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK, SW7 2AZ
| | - Jipeng Yan
- Ultrasound Lab for Imaging and Sensing, Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK, SW7 2AZ
| | - Megan Morris
- Ultrasound Lab for Imaging and Sensing, Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK, SW7 2AZ
| | | | - Navita Somaiah
- Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust and The Institute of Cancer Research, London, UK, SM2 5NG
| | - Meng-Xing Tang
- Ultrasound Lab for Imaging and Sensing, Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK, SW7 2AZ
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4
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Dencks S, Schmitz G. Ultrasound localization microscopy. Z Med Phys 2023; 33:292-308. [PMID: 37328329 PMCID: PMC10517400 DOI: 10.1016/j.zemedi.2023.02.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2022] [Revised: 01/24/2023] [Accepted: 02/10/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Ultrasound Localization Microscopy (ULM) is an emerging technique that provides impressive super-resolved images of microvasculature, i.e., images with much better resolution than the conventional diffraction-limited ultrasound techniques and is already taking its first steps from preclinical to clinical applications. In comparison to the established perfusion or flow measurement methods, namely contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) and Doppler techniques, ULM allows imaging and flow measurements even down to the capillary level. As ULM can be realized as a post-processing method, conventional ultrasound systems can be used for. ULM relies on the localization of single microbubbles (MB) of commercial, clinically approved contrast agents. In general, these very small and strong scatterers with typical radii of 1-3 µm are imaged much larger in ultrasound images than they actually are due to the point spread function of the imaging system. However, by applying appropriate methods, these MBs can be localized with sub-pixel precision. Then, by tracking MBs over successive frames of image sequences, not only the morphology of vascular trees but also functional information such as flow velocities or directions can be obtained and visualized. In addition, quantitative parameters can be derived to describe pathological and physiological changes in the microvasculature. In this review, the general concept of ULM and conditions for its applicability to microvessel imaging are explained. Based on this, various aspects of the different processing steps for a concrete implementation are discussed. The trade-off between complete reconstruction of the microvasculature and the necessary measurement time as well as the implementation in 3D are reviewed in more detail, as they are the focus of current research. Through an overview of potential or already realized preclinical and clinical applications - pathologic angiogenesis or degeneration of vessels, physiological angiogenesis, or the general understanding of organ or tissue function - the great potential of ULM is demonstrated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefanie Dencks
- Lehrstuhl für Medizintechnik, Fakultät für Elektrotechnik und Informationstechnik, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Bochum, Germany.
| | - Georg Schmitz
- Lehrstuhl für Medizintechnik, Fakultät für Elektrotechnik und Informationstechnik, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Bochum, Germany
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Guo X, Ta D, Xu K. Frame rate effects and their compensation on super-resolution microvessel imaging using ultrasound localization microscopy. ULTRASONICS 2023; 132:107009. [PMID: 37060620 DOI: 10.1016/j.ultras.2023.107009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2023] [Revised: 03/21/2023] [Accepted: 04/07/2023] [Indexed: 05/29/2023]
Abstract
Ultrasound localization microscopy (ULM) breaks the diffraction limit and allows imaging microvasculature at micrometric resolution while preserving the penetration depth. Frame rate plays an important role for high-quality ULM imaging, but there is still a lack of review and investigation of the frame rate effects on ULM. This work aims to clarify how frame rate influences the performance of ULM, including the effects of microbubble detection, localization and tracking. The performance of ULM was evaluated using an in vivo rat brain dataset (15.6 MHz, 3 tilted plane waves (-5°, 0°, +5°), at a compounded frame rate of 1000 Hz) with different frame rates. Quantification methods, including Fourier ring correlation and saturation parameter, were applied to analyze the spatial resolution and reconstruction efficiency, respectively. In addition, effects on each crucial step in ULM processing were further analyzed. Results showed that when frame rates dropped from 1000 Hz to 250 Hz, the spatial resolution deteriorated from 9.9 μm to 15.0 μm. Applying a velocity constraint was able to improve the ULM performance, but inappropriate constraint may artificially result in high apparent resolution. For the dataset, compared with the results of 1000 Hz frame rate, the velocity was underestimated at 100 Hz with 47.18% difference and the saturation was reduced from 55.00% at 1000 Hz to 43.34% at 100 Hz. Analysis showed that inadequate frame rate generated unreliable microbubble detection, localization and tracking as well as incomplete track reconstruction, resulting in the deterioration in spatial resolution, the underestimation in velocity measurement and the decrease in saturation. Finally, a guidance of determining the frame rate requirement was discussed by considering the required spatial sampling points based on vessel morphology, clutter filtering method, tracking algorithm and acquisition time, which provides indications for future clinical application of ULM method.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xingyi Guo
- Center for Biomedical Engineering, School of Information Science and Technology, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China; State Key Laboratory of Integrated Chips and Systems, Fudan University, Shanghai 201203, China
| | - Dean Ta
- Center for Biomedical Engineering, School of Information Science and Technology, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China; State Key Laboratory of Integrated Chips and Systems, Fudan University, Shanghai 201203, China; Yiwu Research Institute of Fudan University, Zhejiang 322000, China
| | - Kailiang Xu
- Center for Biomedical Engineering, School of Information Science and Technology, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China; State Key Laboratory of Integrated Chips and Systems, Fudan University, Shanghai 201203, China; Yiwu Research Institute of Fudan University, Zhejiang 322000, China.
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Ferroni G, Sabeti S, Abdus-Shakur T, Scalise L, Carter JM, Fazzio RT, Larson NB, Fatemi M, Alizad A. Noninvasive prediction of axillary lymph node breast cancer metastasis using morphometric analysis of nodal tumor microvessels in a contrast-free ultrasound approach. Breast Cancer Res 2023; 25:65. [PMID: 37296471 PMCID: PMC10257266 DOI: 10.1186/s13058-023-01670-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2023] [Accepted: 06/02/2023] [Indexed: 06/12/2023] Open
Abstract
PURPOSE Changes in microcirculation of axillary lymph nodes (ALNs) may indicate metastasis. Reliable noninvasive imaging technique to quantify such variations is lacking. We aim to develop and investigate a contrast-free ultrasound quantitative microvasculature imaging technique for detection of metastatic ALN in vivo. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN The proposed ultrasound-based technique, high-definition microvasculature imaging (HDMI) provides superb images of tumor microvasculature at sub-millimeter size scales and enables quantitative analysis of microvessels structures. We evaluated the new HDMI technique on 68 breast cancer patients with ultrasound-identified suspicious ipsilateral axillary lymph nodes recommended for fine needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB). HDMI was conducted before the FNAB and vessel morphological features were extracted, analyzed, and the results were correlated with the histopathology. RESULTS Out of 15 evaluated quantitative HDMI biomarkers, 11 were significantly different in metastatic and reactive ALNs (10 with P << 0.01 and one with 0.01 < P < 0.05). We further showed that through analysis of these biomarkers, a predictive model trained on HDMI biomarkers combined with clinical information (i.e., age, node size, cortical thickness, and BI-RADS score) could identify metastatic lymph nodes with an area under the curve of 0.9 (95% CI [0.82,0.98]), sensitivity of 90%, and specificity of 88%. CONCLUSIONS The promising results of our morphometric analysis of HDMI on ALNs offer a new means of detecting lymph node metastasis when used as a complementary imaging tool to conventional ultrasound. The fact that it does not require injection of contrast agents simplifies its use in routine clinical practice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giulia Ferroni
- Department of Physiology and Biomedical Engineering, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Rochester, MN, 55905, USA
| | - Soroosh Sabeti
- Department of Physiology and Biomedical Engineering, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Rochester, MN, 55905, USA
| | - Tasneem Abdus-Shakur
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, 200 1st. St. SW, Rochester, MN, 55905, USA
| | - Lorenzo Scalise
- Department of Industrial Engineering and Mathematical Science, Marche Polytechnic University, 60131, Ancona, Italy
| | - Jodi M Carter
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Rochester, MN, USA
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Robert T Fazzio
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, 200 1st. St. SW, Rochester, MN, 55905, USA
| | - Nicholas B Larson
- Department of Quantitative Health Sciences, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Rochester, MN, 55905, USA
| | - Mostafa Fatemi
- Department of Physiology and Biomedical Engineering, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Rochester, MN, 55905, USA
| | - Azra Alizad
- Department of Physiology and Biomedical Engineering, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Rochester, MN, 55905, USA.
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, 200 1st. St. SW, Rochester, MN, 55905, USA.
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Lai TY, Averkiou MA. Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound with Optimized Aperture Patterns and Bubble Segmentation Based on Echo Phase. ULTRASOUND IN MEDICINE & BIOLOGY 2023; 49:186-202. [PMID: 36441029 PMCID: PMC9713587 DOI: 10.1016/j.ultrasmedbio.2022.08.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2022] [Revised: 08/23/2022] [Accepted: 08/24/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Amplitude modulation (AM) suppresses tissue signals and detects microbubble signals in contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) and is often implemented with checkerboard apertures. However, possible crosstalk between transmitting and non-transmitting array elements may compromise tissue suppression in AM. Using AM aperture patterns other than the conventional checkerboard approach (one on, one off) may reduce the degree of crosstalk and increase the contrast-to-tissue-ratio (CTR) compared with conventional AM. Furthermore, previous studies have reported that the phase difference between the echoes in AM pulsing sequences may be used to segment tissue and microbubbles and improve tissue signal suppression and the CTR of CEUS images. However, the CTR of the image produced by alternative AM aperture patterns and the effect of segmentation approach on these alternative apertures have not been investigated. We evaluated a number of AM aperture patterns to find an optimal AM aperture pattern that provides the highest CTR. We found that the aperture that uses alternating groups of two elements, AM2, had the highest CTR for the probe evaluated. In addition, a segmentation technique based on echo phase differences (between the full and half-pulses, ΔΦAM, between the complementary half-pulses, ΔΦhalf, and the maximum of the two ΔΦmax) was also considered in the AM aperture optimization process. The segmentation approach increases the CTR by about 25 dB for all apertures. Finally, AM2 segmented with ΔΦmax had a 7-dB higher CTR in a flow phantom and a 6-dB higher contrast in a perfused pig liver than conventional AM segmented with ΔΦAM, and it is the optimal transmit aperture design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ting-Yu Lai
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
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Andersen SB, Sørensen CM, Jensen JA, Nielsen MB. Microvascular Imaging with Super-Resolution Ultrasound. ULTRASCHALL IN DER MEDIZIN (STUTTGART, GERMANY : 1980) 2022; 43:543-547. [PMID: 36470255 DOI: 10.1055/a-1937-6868] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
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9
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Zhu J, Zhang C, Christensen-Jeffries K, Zhang G, Harput S, Dunsby C, Huang P, Tang MX. Super-Resolution Ultrasound Localization Microscopy of Microvascular Structure and Flow for Distinguishing Metastatic Lymph Nodes - An Initial Human Study. ULTRASCHALL IN DER MEDIZIN (STUTTGART, GERMANY : 1980) 2022; 43:592-598. [PMID: 36206774 DOI: 10.1055/a-1917-0016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE Detecting and distinguishing metastatic lymph nodes (LNs) from those with benign lymphadenopathy are crucial for cancer diagnosis and prognosis but remain a clinical challenge. A recent advance in super-resolution ultrasound (SRUS) through localizing individual microbubbles has broken the diffraction limit and tracking enabled in vivo noninvasive imaging of vascular morphology and flow dynamics at a microscopic level. In this study we hypothesize that SRUS enables quantitative markers to distinguish metastatic LNs from benign ones in patients with lymphadenopathy. MATERIALS AND METHODS Clinical contrast-enhanced ultrasound image sequences of LNs from 6 patients with lymph node metastasis and 4 with benign lymphadenopathy were acquired and motion-corrected. These were then used to generate super-resolution microvascular images and super-resolved velocity maps. From these SRUS images, morphological and functional measures were obtained including micro-vessel density, fractal dimension, mean flow speed, and Local Flow Direction Irregularity (LFDI) measuring the variance in local flow direction. These measures were compared between pathologically proven reactive and metastasis LNs. RESULTS Our initial results indicate that the difference in the indicator of flow irregularity (LFDI) derived from the SRUS images is statistically significant between the two groups. The LFDI is 60% higher in metastatic LNs compared with reactive nodes. CONCLUSION This pilot study demonstrates the feasibility of super-resolution ultrasound for clinical imaging of lymph nodes and the potential of using the irregularity of local blood flow directions afforded by SRUS for the characterization of LNs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiaqi Zhu
- Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
| | - Chao Zhang
- Department of Ultrasound, Zhejiang University School of Medicine Second Affiliated Hospital, Hangzhou, People's Republic of China
| | - Kirsten Christensen-Jeffries
- Imaging Sciences and Biomedical Engineering, King's College London School of Medical Education, London, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
| | - Ge Zhang
- Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
| | - Sevan Harput
- Division of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, London South Bank University, London, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
| | - Christopher Dunsby
- Physics, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
| | - Pintong Huang
- Department of Ultrasound, Zhejiang University School of Medicine Second Affiliated Hospital, Hangzhou, People's Republic of China
| | - Meng-Xing Tang
- Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
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Ternifi R, Wang Y, Gu J, Polley EC, Carter JM, Pruthi S, Boughey JC, Fazzio RT, Fatemi M, Alizad A. Ultrasound high-definition microvasculature imaging with novel quantitative biomarkers improves breast cancer detection accuracy. Eur Radiol 2022; 32:7448-7462. [PMID: 35486168 PMCID: PMC9616967 DOI: 10.1007/s00330-022-08815-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2022] [Revised: 03/24/2022] [Accepted: 04/12/2022] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES To overcome the limitations of power Doppler in imaging angiogenesis, we sought to develop and investigate new quantitative biomarkers of a contrast-free ultrasound microvasculature imaging technique for differentiation of benign from malignant pathologies of breast lesion. METHODS In this prospective study, a new high-definition microvasculature imaging (HDMI) was tested on 521 patients with 527 ultrasound-identified suspicious breast masses indicated for biopsy. Four new morphological features of tumor microvessels, microvessel fractal dimension (mvFD), Murray's deviation (MD), bifurcation angle (BA), and spatial vascularity pattern (SVP) as well as initial biomarkers were extracted and analyzed, and the results correlated with pathology. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to study the performance of different prediction models, initial biomarkers, new biomarkers, and combined new and initial biomarkers in differentiating benign from malignant lesions. RESULTS The new HDMI biomarkers, mvFD, BA, MD, and SVP, were statistically significantly different in malignant and benign lesions, regardless of tumor size. Sensitivity and specificity of the new biomarkers in lesions > 20 mm were 95.6% and 100%, respectively. Combining the new and initial biomarkers together showed an AUC, sensitivity, and specificity of 97% (95% CI: 95-98%), 93.8%, and 89.2%, respectively, for all lesions regardless of mass size. The classification was further improved by adding the Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BI-RADS) score to the prediction model, showing an AUC, sensitivity, and specificity of 97% (95% CI: 95-98%), 93.8%, and 89.2%, respectively. CONCLUSION The addition of new quantitative HDMI biomarkers significantly improved the accuracy in breast lesion characterization when used as a complementary imaging tool to the conventional ultrasound. KEY POINTS • Novel quantitative biomarkers extracted from tumor microvessel images increase the sensitivity and specificity in discriminating malignant from benign breast masses. • New HDMI biomarkers Murray's deviation, bifurcation angles, microvessel fractal dimension, and spatial vascularity pattern outperformed the initial biomarkers. • The addition of BI-RADS scores based on US descriptors to the multivariable analysis using all biomarkers remarkably increased the sensitivity, specificity, and AUC in all size groups.
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Affiliation(s)
- Redouane Ternifi
- Department of Physiology and Biomedical Engineering, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Rochester, MN, USA
| | - Yinong Wang
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, 200 1st Street SW, Rochester, MN, 55905, USA
| | - Juanjuan Gu
- Department of Physiology and Biomedical Engineering, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Rochester, MN, USA
| | - Eric C Polley
- Department of Health Science, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Rochester, MN, USA
| | - Jodi M Carter
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Rochester, MN, USA
| | - Sandhya Pruthi
- Department of Medicine, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, Rochester, MN, USA
| | - Judy C Boughey
- Department of Surgery, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Rochester, MN, USA
| | - Robert T Fazzio
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, 200 1st Street SW, Rochester, MN, 55905, USA
| | - Mostafa Fatemi
- Department of Physiology and Biomedical Engineering, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Rochester, MN, USA
| | - Azra Alizad
- Department of Physiology and Biomedical Engineering, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Rochester, MN, USA.
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, 200 1st Street SW, Rochester, MN, 55905, USA.
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Valimukhametova AR, Zub OS, Lee BH, Fannon O, Nguyen S, Gonzalez-Rodriguez R, Akkaraju GR, Naumov AV. Dual-Mode Fluorescence/Ultrasound Imaging with Biocompatible Metal-Doped Graphene Quantum Dots. ACS Biomater Sci Eng 2022; 8:4965-4975. [PMID: 36179254 DOI: 10.1021/acsbiomaterials.2c00794] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Sonography offers many advantages over standard methods of diagnostic imaging due to its non-invasiveness, substantial tissue penetration depth, and low cost. The benefits of ultrasound imaging call for the development of ultrasound-trackable drug delivery vehicles that can address a variety of therapeutic targets. One disadvantage of the technique is the lack of high-precision imaging, which can be circumvented by complementing ultrasound contrast agents with visible and, especially, near-infrared (NIR) fluorophores. In this work, we, for the first time, develop a variety of lightly metal-doped (iron oxide, silver, thulium, neodymium, cerium oxide, cerium chloride, and molybdenum disulfide) nitrogen-containing graphene quantum dots (NGQDs) that demonstrate high-contrast properties in the ultrasound brightness mode and exhibit visible and/or near-infrared fluorescence imaging capabilities. NGQDs synthesized from glucosamine precursors with only a few percent metal doping do not introduce additional toxicity in vitro, yielding over 80% cell viability up to 2 mg/mL doses. Their small (<50 nm) sizes warrant effective cell internalization, while oxygen-containing surface functional groups decorating their surfaces render NGQDs water soluble and allow for the attachment of therapeutics and targeting agents. Utilizing visible and/or NIR fluorescence, we demonstrate that metal-doped NGQDs experience maximum accumulation within the HEK-293 cells 6-12 h after treatment. The successful 10-fold ultrasound signal enhancement is observed at 0.5-1.6 mg/mL for most metal-doped NGQDs in the vascular phantom, agarose gel, and animal tissue. A combination of non-invasive ultrasound imaging with capabilities of high-precision fluorescence tracking makes these metal-doped NGQDs a viable agent for a variety of theragnostic applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alina R Valimukhametova
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, Texas 76129, United States
| | - Olga S Zub
- Alfa Radiology Management, Inc, Plano, Texas 75023, United States
| | - Bong Han Lee
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, Texas 76129, United States
| | - Olivia Fannon
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, Texas 76129, United States
| | - Steven Nguyen
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, Texas 76129, United States
| | - Roberto Gonzalez-Rodriguez
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, Texas 76129, United States
| | - Giridhar R Akkaraju
- Department of Biology, Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, Texas 76129, United States
| | - Anton V Naumov
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, Texas 76129, United States
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12
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Yan J, Zhang T, Broughton-Venner J, Huang P, Tang MX. Super-Resolution Ultrasound Through Sparsity-Based Deconvolution and Multi-Feature Tracking. IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON MEDICAL IMAGING 2022; 41:1938-1947. [PMID: 35171767 PMCID: PMC7614417 DOI: 10.1109/tmi.2022.3152396] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/01/2023]
Abstract
Ultrasound super-resolution imaging through localisation and tracking of microbubbles can achieve sub-wave-diffraction resolution in mapping both micro-vascular structure and flow dynamics in deep tissue in vivo. Currently, it is still challenging to achieve high accuracy in localisation and tracking particularly with limited imaging frame rates and in the presence of high bubble concentrations. This study introduces microbubble image features into a Kalman tracking framework, and makes the framework compatible with sparsity-based deconvolution to address these key challenges. The performance of the method is evaluated on both simulations using individual bubble signals segmented from in vivo data and experiments on a mouse brain and a human lymph node. The simulation results show that the deconvolution not only significantly improves the accuracy of isolating overlapping bubbles, but also preserves some image features of the bubbles. The combination of such features with Kalman motion model can achieve a significant improvement in tracking precision at a low frame rate over that using the distance measure, while the improvement is not significant at the highest frame rate. The in vivo results show that the proposed framework generates SR images that are significantly different from the current methods with visual improvement, and is more robust to high bubble concentrations and low frame rates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jipeng Yan
- Ultrasound Lab for Imaging and Sensing, Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK, SW7 2AZ
| | - Tao Zhang
- Second Affiliate Hospital, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China, 313000
| | - Jacob Broughton-Venner
- Ultrasound Lab for Imaging and Sensing, Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK, SW7 2AZ
| | - Pintong Huang
- Second Affiliate Hospital, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China, 313000
| | - Meng-Xing Tang
- Ultrasound Lab for Imaging and Sensing, Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK, SW7 2AZ
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13
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Heiles B, Chavignon A, Hingot V, Lopez P, Teston E, Couture O. Performance benchmarking of microbubble-localization algorithms for ultrasound localization microscopy. Nat Biomed Eng 2022; 6:605-616. [PMID: 35177778 DOI: 10.1038/s41551-021-00824-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2020] [Accepted: 07/29/2021] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Ultrafast ultrasound localization microscopy can be used to detect the subwavelength acoustic scattering of intravenously injected microbubbles to obtain haemodynamic maps of the vasculature of animals and humans. The quality of the haemodynamic maps depends on signal-to-noise ratios and on the algorithms used for the localization of the microbubbles and the rendering of their trajectories. Here we report the results of benchmarking of the performance of seven microbubble-localization algorithms. We used metrics for localization errors, localization success rates, processing times and a measure of the reprojection of the localization of the microbubbles on the original beamformed grid. We combined eleven metrics into an overall score and tested the algorithms in three simulated microcirculation datasets, and in angiography datasets of the brain of a live rat after craniotomy, an excised rat kidney and a mammary tumour in a live mouse. The algorithms, metrics and datasets, which we have made openly available at https://github.com/AChavignon/PALA and https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4343435 , will facilitate the identification or generation of optimal microbubble-localization algorithms for specific applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Baptiste Heiles
- Sorbonne Université, CNRS, INSERM, Laboratoire d'Imagerie Biomédicale, Paris, France.
- ESPCI, CNRS, INSERM, PhysMedParis, Paris, France.
| | - Arthur Chavignon
- Sorbonne Université, CNRS, INSERM, Laboratoire d'Imagerie Biomédicale, Paris, France
| | - Vincent Hingot
- Sorbonne Université, CNRS, INSERM, Laboratoire d'Imagerie Biomédicale, Paris, France
- ESPCI, CNRS, INSERM, PhysMedParis, Paris, France
| | - Pauline Lopez
- ESPCI, CNRS, INSERM, PhysMedParis, Paris, France
- Institut Cochin, INSERM U1016, Paris, France
| | | | - Olivier Couture
- Sorbonne Université, CNRS, INSERM, Laboratoire d'Imagerie Biomédicale, Paris, France
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14
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Xiao X, Ding R, Peng L, Liu H, Zhu Y. Diagnostic performance of magnetic resonance imaging and ultrasonography on the detection of cesarean scar pregnancy: A meta-analysis. Medicine (Baltimore) 2021; 100:e27532. [PMID: 35049166 PMCID: PMC9191567 DOI: 10.1097/md.0000000000027532] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2021] [Accepted: 09/29/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND : There is still a debate on which imaging method is the best to diagnose cesarean scar pregnancy (CSP). Accordingly, this study aimed to analyze the diagnostic performance of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and ultrasonography (US) on the detection of CSP based on current evidence in the literature. METHODS PubMed, Embase, Cochrane, Chinese Biomedical Documentation Service System, WanFang, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure databases were searched up to June 2020. The included studies were all comparisons of MRI and US in the diagnosis of CSP that adopted postoperative histological examination as the reference standard. The pooled sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio (PLR), negative likelihood ratio (NLR), and area under the summary receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) were calculated for MRI and US. RESULTS Thirteen studies were included, with a total sample size of 948 patients. The pooled sensitivity, specificity, PLR, NLR, and AUC of MRI in diagnosing CSP were 0.93 (95% CI, 0.91-0.95), 0.83 (95% CI, 0.75-0.89), 5.46 (95% CI, 3.70-8.05), 0.08 (95% CI, 0.06-0.11), and 0.96 (95% CI, 0.93-0.97), respectively; for US they were 0.84 (95% CI, 0.79-0.88), 0.73 (95% CI, 0.62-0.81), 3.06 (95% CI, 2.22-4.21), 0.23 (95% CI, 0.18-0.28), and 0.86 (95% CI, 0.83-0.89), respectively. CONCLUSION We found that both MRI and US effectively diagnosed CSP; however, MRI had a higher diagnostic performance in detecting CSP than US.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoyi Xiao
- Department of Radiology, The Third Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, People's Republic of China
| | - Rixing Ding
- Department of Radiology, The Third Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, People's Republic of China
| | - Lei Peng
- Department of Radiology, The Third Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, People's Republic of China
| | - Huaping Liu
- Department of Radiology, The Third Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, People's Republic of China
| | - Yun Zhu
- Department of Ultrasound, The First Hospital of Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Changsha, Hunan, People's Republic of China
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15
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Yin J, Zhang J, Zhu Y, Dong F, An J, Wang D, Li N, Luo Y, Wang Y, Wang X, Zhang J. Ultrasound microvasculature imaging with entropy-based radiality super-resolution (ERSR). Phys Med Biol 2021; 66. [PMID: 34592723 DOI: 10.1088/1361-6560/ac2bb3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2021] [Accepted: 09/30/2021] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
Objective:Microvasculature is highly relevant to the occurrence and development of pathologies such as cancer and diabetes. Ultrasound localization microscopy (ULM) has bypassed the diffraction limit and demonstrated its great potential to provide new imaging modality and establish new diagnostic criteria in clinical application. However, sparse microbubble distribution can be a significant bottleneck for improving temporal resolution, even for further clinical translation. Other important challenges for ULM to tackle in clinic also include high microbubble concentration and low frame rate.Approach:As part of the efforts to facilitate clinical translation, this paper focused on the low frame rate and the high microbubble distribution issue and proposed a new super-resolution imaging strategy called entropy-based radiality super-resolution (ERSR). The feasibility of ERSR is validated with simulations, phantom experiment and contrast-enhanced ultrasound scan of rabbit sciatic nerve with clinical accessible ultrasound system.Main results:ERSR can achieve 10 times improvement in spatial resolution compared to conventional ultrasound imaging, higher temporal resolution (∼10 times higher) and contrast-to-noise ratio under high-density microbubbles, compared with ULM under low-density microbubbles.Significance:We conclude ERSR could be a valuable imaging tool with high spatio-temporal resolution for clinical diagnosis and assessment of diseases potentially.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jingyi Yin
- Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies, Peking University, Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Jiabin Zhang
- Institute of Molecular Medicine, Peking University, Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Yaqiong Zhu
- Department of Ultrasound, First Medical Centre, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Feihong Dong
- Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies, Peking University, Beijing, People's Republic of China.,Institute of Molecular Medicine, Peking University, Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Jian An
- Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies, Peking University, Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Di Wang
- Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies, Peking University, Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Nan Li
- Department of Ultrasound, First Medical Centre, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Yukun Luo
- Department of Ultrasound, First Medical Centre, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Yuexiang Wang
- Department of Ultrasound, First Medical Centre, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Xiaoying Wang
- Department of Radiology, Peking University First Hospital, Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Jue Zhang
- Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies, Peking University, Beijing, People's Republic of China.,College of Engineering, Peking University, Beijing, People's Republic of China
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16
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Schoen S, Zhao Z, Alva A, Huang C, Chen S, Arvanitis C. Morphological Reconstruction Improves Microvessel Mapping in Super-Resolution Ultrasound. IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON ULTRASONICS, FERROELECTRICS, AND FREQUENCY CONTROL 2021; 68:2141-2149. [PMID: 33544672 PMCID: PMC8574223 DOI: 10.1109/tuffc.2021.3057540] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/12/2023]
Abstract
Generation of super-resolution (SR) ultrasound (US) images, created from the successive localization of individual microbubbles in the circulation, has enabled the visualization of microvascular structure and flow at a level of detail that was not possible previously. Despite rapid progress, tradeoffs between spatial and temporal resolution may challenge the translation of this promising technology to the clinic. To temper these tradeoffs, we propose a method based on morphological image reconstruction. This method can extract from ultrafast contrast-enhanced US (CEUS) images hundreds of microbubble peaks per image (312-by-180 pixels) with intensity values varying by an order of magnitude. Specifically, it offers a fourfold increase in the number of peaks detected per frame, requires on the order of 100 ms for processing, and is robust to additive electronic noise (down to 3.6-dB CNR in CEUS images). By integrating this method to an SR framework, we demonstrate a sixfold improvement in spatial resolution, when compared with CEUS, in imaging chicken embryo microvessels. This method that is computationally efficient and, thus, scalable to large data sets may augment the abilities of SR-US in imaging microvascular structure and function.
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17
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Huang C, Zhang W, Gong P, Lok UW, Tang S, Yin T, Zhang X, Zhu L, Sang M, Song P, Zheng R, Chen S. Super-resolution ultrasound localization microscopy based on a high frame-rate clinical ultrasound scanner: an in-human feasibility study. Phys Med Biol 2021; 66. [PMID: 33725687 DOI: 10.1088/1361-6560/abef45] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2020] [Accepted: 03/16/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Non-invasive detection of microvascular alterations in deep tissuesin vivoprovides critical information for clinical diagnosis and evaluation of a broad-spectrum of pathologies. Recently, the emergence of super-resolution ultrasound localization microscopy (ULM) offers new possibilities for clinical imaging of microvasculature at capillary level. Currently, the clinical utility of ULM on clinical ultrasound scanners is hindered by the technical limitations, such as long data acquisition time, high microbubble (MB) concentration, and compromised tracking performance associated with low imaging frame-rate. Here we present a robust in-human ULM on a high frame-rate (HFR) clinical ultrasound scanner to achieve super-resolution microvessel imaging using a short acquisition time (<10 s). Ultrasound MB data were acquired from different human tissues, including a healthy liver and a diseased liver with acute-on-chronic liver failure, a kidney, a pancreatic tumor, and a breast mass using an HFR clinical scanner. By leveraging the HFR and advanced processing techniques including sub-pixel motion registration, MB signal separation, and Kalman filter-based tracking, MBs can be robustly localized and tracked for ULM under the circumstances of relatively high MB concentration associated with standard clinical MB administration and limited data acquisition time in humans. Subtle morphological and hemodynamic information in microvasculature were shown based on data acquired with single breath-hold and free-hand scanning. Compared with contrast-enhanced power Doppler generated based on the same MB dataset, ULM showed a 5.7-fold resolution improvement in a vessel based on a linear transducer, and provided a wide-range blood flow speed measurement that is Doppler angle-independent. Microvasculatures with complex hemodynamics can be well-differentiated at super-resolution in both normal and pathological tissues. This preliminary study implemented the ultrafast in-human ULM in various human tissues based on a clinical scanner that supports HFR imaging, indicating the potentials of the technique for various clinical applications. However, rigorous validation of the technique in imaging human microvasculature (especially for those tiny vessel structure), preferably with a gold standard, is still required.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chengwu Huang
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, United States of America
| | - Wei Zhang
- Department of Ultrasound, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Liver Disease Research, Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
| | - Ping Gong
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, United States of America
| | - U-Wai Lok
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, United States of America
| | - Shanshan Tang
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, United States of America
| | - Tinghui Yin
- Department of Ultrasound, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Liver Disease Research, Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
| | - Xirui Zhang
- Shenzhen Mindray Bio-Medical Electronics Co. Ltd, Shenzhen, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
| | - Lei Zhu
- Shenzhen Mindray Bio-Medical Electronics Co. Ltd, Shenzhen, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
| | - Maodong Sang
- Shenzhen Mindray Bio-Medical Electronics Co. Ltd, Shenzhen, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
| | - Pengfei Song
- Beckman Institute, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, United States of America.,Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, United States of America
| | - Rongqin Zheng
- Department of Ultrasound, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Liver Disease Research, Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
| | - Shigao Chen
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, United States of America
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18
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Zhao F, Unnikrishnan S, Herbst EB, Klibanov AL, Mauldin FW, Hossack JA. A Targeted Molecular Localization Imaging Method Applied to Tumor Microvasculature. Invest Radiol 2021; 56:197-206. [PMID: 32976207 PMCID: PMC9462590 DOI: 10.1097/rli.0000000000000728] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Ultrasound contrast agents, consisting of gas-filled microbubbles (MBs), have been imaged using several techniques that include ultrasound localization microscopy and targeted molecular imaging. Each of these techniques aims to provide indicators of the disease state but has traditionally been performed independently without co-localization of molecular markers and super-resolved vessels. In this article, we present a new imaging technology: a targeted molecular localization (TML) approach, which uses a single imaging sequence and reconstruction approach to co-localize super-resolved vasculature with molecular imaging signature to provide simultaneous anatomic and biological information for potential multiscale disease evaluation. MATERIALS AND METHODS The feasibility of the proposed TML technique was validated in a murine hindlimb tumor model. Targeted molecular localization imaging was performed on 3 groups, which included control tissue (leg), tumor tissue, and tumor tissue after sunitinib an-tivascular treatment. Quantitative measures for vascular index (VI) and molecular index (MITML) were calculated from the microvasculature and TML images, respectively. In addition to these conventional metrics, a new metric unique to the TML technique, reporting the ratio of targeted molecular index to vessel surface, was assessed. RESULTS The quantitative resolution results of the TML approach showed resolved resolution of the microvasculature down to 28.8 μm. Vascular index increased in tumors with and without sunitinib compared with the control leg, but the trend was not statistically significant. A decrease in MITML was observed for the tumor after treatment (P < 0.0005) and for the control leg (P < 0.005) compared with the tumor before treatment. Statistical differences in the ratio of molecular index to vessel surface were found between all groups: the control leg and tumor (P < 0.05), the control leg and tumor after sunitinib treatment (P < 0.05), and between tumors with and without sunitinib treatment (P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS These findings validated the technical feasibility of the TML method and pre-clinical feasibility for differentiating between the normal and diseased tissue states.
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Affiliation(s)
- Feifei Zhao
- From the Department of Biomedical Engineering
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19
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Spinczyk D, Stronczek M, Badura A, Sperka P, Krywalska D, Wolinska A, Krasoń A, Fabian S, Bas M, Woloshuk A, Zylkowski J, Rosiak G, Konecki D, Milczarek K, Rowinski O, Pietka E. Initial clinical evaluation of image fusion based on rigid registration and supporting percutaneous liver tumor ablation. Biocybern Biomed Eng 2020. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bbe.2020.07.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
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20
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Christensen-Jeffries K, Couture O, Dayton PA, Eldar YC, Hynynen K, Kiessling F, O'Reilly M, Pinton GF, Schmitz G, Tang MX, Tanter M, van Sloun RJG. Super-resolution Ultrasound Imaging. ULTRASOUND IN MEDICINE & BIOLOGY 2020; 46:865-891. [PMID: 31973952 PMCID: PMC8388823 DOI: 10.1016/j.ultrasmedbio.2019.11.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 161] [Impact Index Per Article: 40.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2019] [Revised: 11/17/2019] [Accepted: 11/20/2019] [Indexed: 05/02/2023]
Abstract
The majority of exchanges of oxygen and nutrients are performed around vessels smaller than 100 μm, allowing cells to thrive everywhere in the body. Pathologies such as cancer, diabetes and arteriosclerosis can profoundly alter the microvasculature. Unfortunately, medical imaging modalities only provide indirect observation at this scale. Inspired by optical microscopy, ultrasound localization microscopy has bypassed the classic compromise between penetration and resolution in ultrasonic imaging. By localization of individual injected microbubbles and tracking of their displacement with a subwavelength resolution, vascular and velocity maps can be produced at the scale of the micrometer. Super-resolution ultrasound has also been performed through signal fluctuations with the same type of contrast agents, or through switching on and off nano-sized phase-change contrast agents. These techniques are now being applied pre-clinically and clinically for imaging of the microvasculature of the brain, kidney, skin, tumors and lymph nodes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kirsten Christensen-Jeffries
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, St Thomas' Hospital, London, United Kingdom
| | - Olivier Couture
- Institute of Physics for Medicine Paris, Inserm U1273, ESPCI Paris, CNRS FRE 2031, PSL University, Paris, France.
| | - Paul A Dayton
- Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Yonina C Eldar
- Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Kullervo Hynynen
- Physical Sciences Platform, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada; Institute of Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Fabian Kiessling
- Institute for Experimental Molecular Imaging, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany
| | - Meaghan O'Reilly
- Physical Sciences Platform, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Gianmarco F Pinton
- Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Georg Schmitz
- Chair for Medical Engineering, Faculty for Electrical Engineering and Information Technology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Meng-Xing Tang
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Mickael Tanter
- Institute of Physics for Medicine Paris, Inserm U1273, ESPCI Paris, CNRS FRE 2031, PSL University, Paris, France
| | - Ruud J G van Sloun
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
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21
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Jensen JA, Ommen ML, Oygard SH, Schou M, Sams T, Stuart MB, Beers C, Thomsen EV, Larsen NB, Tomov BG. Three-Dimensional Super-Resolution Imaging Using a Row-Column Array. IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON ULTRASONICS, FERROELECTRICS, AND FREQUENCY CONTROL 2020; 67:538-546. [PMID: 31634831 DOI: 10.1109/tuffc.2019.2948563] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
A 3-D super-resolution (SR) pipeline based on data from a row-column (RC) array is presented. The 3-MHz RC array contains 62 rows and 62 columns with a half wavelength pitch. A synthetic aperture (SA) pulse inversion sequence with 32 positive and 32 negative row emissions is used for acquiring volumetric data using the SARUS research ultrasound scanner. Data received on the 62 columns are beamformed on a GPU for a maximum volume rate of 156 Hz when the pulse repetition frequency is 10 kHz. Simulated and 3-D printed point and flow microphantoms are used for investigating the approach. The flow microphantom contains a 100- [Formula: see text] radius tube injected with the contrast agent SonoVue. The 3-D processing pipeline uses the volumetric envelope data to find the bubble's positions from their interpolated maximum signal and yields a high resolution in all three coordinates. For the point microphantom, the standard deviation on the position is (20.7, 19.8, 9.1) [Formula: see text]. The precision estimated for the flow phantom is below [Formula: see text] in all three coordinates, making it possible to locate structures on the order of a capillary in all three dimensions. The RC imaging sequence's point spread function has a size of 0.58 × 1.05 × 0.31 mm3 ( 1.17λ×2.12λ×0.63λ ), so the possible volume resolution is 28900 times smaller than for SA RC B-mode imaging.
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