Development of an automated asbestos counting software based on fluorescence microscopy
Development of an automated asbestos counting software based on fluorescence microscopy
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DOI：
10.1007/s10661-014-4166-y
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发表时间：
2015-01-01
影响因子：
3
通讯作者：
Kuroda, Akio
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Alexandrov, Maxym;Ichida, Etsuko;Kuroda, Akio
一种替代常用石棉分析方法的新兴方法是荧光显微镜（FM），它依靠高度特异性的石棉结合探针来区分石棉和干扰的非石棉纤维。然而，所有类型的显微石棉分析都需要对大量视场进行费力的检查，并且容易出现主观错误，不同分析人员和实验室的石棉计数之间存在很大差异。这些问题的一个可能的解决方案是通过图像分析软件自动计数石棉纤维，这将降低成本，提高石棉测试的可靠性。本研究旨在开发一种纤维识别和计数软件，用于基于fm的石棉分析。讨论了所开发软件的主要特点和测试结果。软件测试表明，在中等和高纤维浓度的样品中，自动计数和人工计数之间存在良好的相关性。在低纤维浓度下，自动计数不太准确，导致我们实现自动计数的校正模式。虽然石棉分析的完全自动化需要进一步提高纤维识别的准确性，但开发的软件已经可以帮助专业石棉分析人员并记录详细的纤维尺寸，用于流行病学研究。
An emerging alternative to the commonly used analytical methods for asbestos analysis is fluorescence microscopy (FM), which relies on highly specific asbestos-binding probes to distinguish asbestos from interfering non-asbestos fibers. However, all types of microscopic asbestos analysis require laborious examination of large number of fields of view and are prone to subjective errors and large variability between asbestos counts by different analysts and laboratories. A possible solution to these problems is automated counting of asbestos fibers by image analysis software, which would lower the cost and increase the reliability of asbestos testing. This study seeks to develop a fiber recognition and counting software for FM-based asbestos analysis. We discuss the main features of the developed software and the results of its testing. Software testing showed good correlation between automated and manual counts for the samples with medium and high fiber concentrations. At low fiber concentrations, the automated counts were less accurate, leading us to implement correction mode for automated counts. While the full automation of asbestos analysis would require further improvements in accuracy of fiber identification, the developed software could already assist professional asbestos analysts and record detailed fiber dimensions for the use in epidemiological research.