IDBR: Development of an Adaptive Optic Scanning Laser Microscope for Deep Tissue Imaging

在天文学领域，自适应光学被用来校正星光穿过地球大气层时发生的图像像差：折射率的动态变化会折射光线，导致恒星“闪烁”。用于大型地面望远镜的自适应光学系统包括一个测量“引导星”像差的波前传感器、一个位于目标视场中的自然或人造点源参考信标，以及一个可动态改变其形状的可变形反射镜，它可以校正图像以恢复衍射极限图像。天文学中用于获得外层空间天体更清晰图像的自适应光学系统将被重新应用于生物成像领域，以校正细胞内折射率变化引起的图像像差。荧光珠将被用作参考信标，并被植入到感兴趣的对象附近，例如细胞的细胞核。预期的结果是对高度像差的图像进行校正，从而获得由成像系统的衍射设置的分辨率极限。一旦开发出来，显微镜将在一个新的研究中心使用，该研究中心由加州再生医学研究所(www.Cirm.ca.gov)资助。

In the field of astronomy, adaptive optics are used to correct for the image aberrations that occur as starlight passes through the Earth's atmosphere: Dynamic changes in the refractive index refract the light, causing stars to "twinkle." The adaptive optics that are used in large terrestrial telescopes consist of a wavefront sensor to measure the aberrations of a "guide star," a natural or artificial point source reference beacon in the field of view of the object of interest, and a deformable mirror that can dynamically change its shape correct the image to restore diffraction limited imaging.The adaptive optics used in astronomy to obtain clearer images of celestial bodies in outer space will be re-applied in the field of biological imaging to correct image aberrations from changes in the refractive index within a cell. A fluorescent bead will be used as the reference beacon and implanted near the object of interest, such as the nucleus of a cell. Expected outcome is the correction of highly aberrated images, thereby obtaining the resolution limit set by diffraction of the imaging system. Once developed, the microscope will be available in a new research center, funded by the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (www.cirm.ca.gov).