Microscope Imaging System for Quantitative Fibrosis Assessment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for assessing fibrosis in tissue samples, such as renal and liver fibrosis, rely heavily on visual inspection with specific stains like Masson's trichrome and picosirius red, which are not quantitative and require multiple samples, limiting their reliability and efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A method that combines absorption and birefringence imaging of stained tissue samples using a microscope imaging system, where absorption images are obtained with light of specific wavelengths and birefringence images are obtained with closely matched or distinct wavelengths, allowing for the identification and quantification of collagen and assessment of fibrosis stages in a single sample.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If visual assessment with special stains (Masson's trichrome, picosirius red) is used to assess fibrosis, then collagen-specific contrast is improved, but quantitative measurement capability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent utilizes birefringence-based color changes in collagen fibers under polarized light to enable quantitative assessment. Collagen fibers exhibit characteristic birefringence colors (yellow, orange, green) that correlate with fiber diameter and organization, allowing both visual differentiation and automated quantitative measurement of fibrosis severity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces subjective visual assessment with automated image analysis systems that quantify birefringence properties. Digital imaging and computational algorithms objectively measure collagen fiber characteristics, transforming qualitative visual evaluation into precise quantitative data for fibrosis staging.
2Loss of information
If multiple separate staining procedures are performed to assess different tissue components, then assessment comprehensiveness is improved, but sample consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple assessment capabilities into a single polarized light microscopy system that simultaneously evaluates collagen fibers, general tissue architecture, and cellular components. By acquiring both polarized and unpolarized images of the same tissue section, the system integrates information that would traditionally require separate staining procedures, thereby preserving valuable tissue samples.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a multi-functional imaging system that serves multiple diagnostic purposes with a single tissue section. The system can assess fibrosis severity, evaluate tissue architecture, and identify cellular features simultaneously, making the imaging approach universally applicable for comprehensive tissue evaluation without requiring additional samples.
3Measurement precision
If automated image analysis is implemented for fibrosis assessment, then diagnostic accuracy is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses digital copying of tissue images through polarized light microscopy, creating accurate digital representations that can be analyzed computationally. The digital images preserve all relevant optical information while enabling sophisticated automated analysis algorithms to quantify fibrosis features, thereby improving diagnostic accuracy through computational power rather than physical system complexity.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach enables accurate, quantitative assessment of fibrosis by overlaying absorption and birefringence images, providing enhanced contrast and allowing for automated classification and diagnosis, reducing the need for multiple samples and improving diagnostic accuracy.
Implementation Method 1
Picosirius red is birefringent and collagen-specific, and chemically enhances the birefringence of collagen fibers when it binds to the fibers. Bound picosirius red can increase the birefringence of collagen fibers so that relative amounts or types of collagen can be discerned as colors under a conventional white light polarized light microscope with crossed circular polarizers
Implementation Method 2
Certain immunohistochemical (IHC) stains bind selectively to certain structures and/or cell types within a tissue sample. Under a microscope, the color of regions that include stain molecules bound to tissue structures can be different from the color of unstained regions of the sample
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed herein are methods and apparatus for obtaining at least one non-birefringence image and at least one birefringence image of a stained sample, and classifying regions of the stained sample into a plurality of classes based on the at least one non-birefringence image and the at least one birefringence image.