Pushing the limits of biomedical optics endoscopy through the development of dedicated instrumentation

在过去的25年里，出现了一系列利用激光与生物组织之间相互作用的新型医学成像模式。这些技术现在被用于生物学中观察组织，在建筑（使用大视场模式，如光学相干断层扫描），细胞（使用共聚焦显微镜）或分子（使用荧光或非线性技术）水平。翻译到临床世界将允许临床医生进行微创诊断。虽然生物医学光学技术具有传统医学成像仪器（如X射线，MRI， PET）无法超越的分辨率和对比度，但它们的穿透深度太浅，无法实现内部器官的可视化，而不开发称为内窥镜的小而灵活的仪器。此外，虽然荧光剂可以用于研究小动物的生物过程，但很少有荧光剂被批准用于人类。因此，我们必须主要依靠内源性分子（如天然存在于人体组织中的荧光团）来获得特定的对比。

The past 25 years have witnessed the emergence of a wide array of novel medical imaging modalities exploiting the interaction between laser light and biological tissues. The techniques are now used in biology for observing tissues at architectural (using large field-of-view modalities such as optical coherence tomography), cellular (using confocal microscopy) or molecular (using fluorescence or nonlinear techniques) levels. Translation to the clinical world will allow clinicians to perform minimally invasive diagnoses. While biomedical optics techniques have a resolution and contrast unsurpassed by conventional medical imaging instruments (such as X rays, MRI, PET), their penetration depth is too shallow to perform visualization of internal organs without developing small and flexible instruments known as endoscopes. Additionally, while fluorescent agents may be added to study biological processes in small animals, very few are approved for use in humans. We must therefore rely mostly on endogeneous molecules (eg fluorophores naturally present in human tissues) to obtain specific contrast. The goals of this research are thus to: (1) study the interaction of lasers with biological tissues to develop ways to excite endogeneous molecules, (2) develop novel optical fibre components that will allow exciting these molecules for enhanced endoscopic imaging and (3) design and fabricate miniature lenses and other optical components to obtain high resolution imaging within the narrow confines of endoscopy. The biomedical industry in Canada will benefit from this research through the generation of new intellectual property, the training of highly qualified and specialised personnel as well as the creation of a unique expertise in lens fabrication through a technology called diamond-turning CNC available at École Polytechnique Montréal. The long term impact of this research is to decrease health care cost and increase overall the quality of life of Canadians by providing clinicians with diagnostic tools allowing for more accurate, less invasive screening procedures at stages where full recovery is the most likely outcome.