SBIR Phase II: X-ray Microscope for In-Vivo Biological Imaging

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This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project aims to develop a sub-micron x-ray tomography scanner capable of providing in-vivo and high resolution images of specimens from mice to bacteria. In this era of molecular medicine, where disease and developmental disorders are being re-defined by their peculiar molecular, genetic or cellular profiles, there exists a significant disparity between the type of information gleaned from histological methods and that obtained from conventional non-invasive imaging modalities. With a resolution that is better than these imaging modalities and more than ten times higher than that of current x-ray imaging systems, the proposed device will generate images of development and disease not possible by current methods. The Phase II research will concentrate on the development of the x-ray optical system, including beam conditioning, tomographic imaging capability, and the imaging x-ray lens, and will result in a table-top commercial prototype computerized tomographic imager with 400 nm resolution. The commercial application of this project will be in the area of medical research. When compared to existing in-vivo imaging technologies, the higher resolution of the proposed x-ray imager will translate to improved sensitivity and specificity of morphologic changes associated with growth and disease. Researchers will be able to use this tool for investigations of a number of medical conditions, including tumor angiogenesis, atherosclerosis, osteoporosis and arthritis.