Cologne Experimental Eye Imaging Center (CEE-IC)

在第一个资助期，建立了一个用于小鼠的多模式实验成像设施--科隆实验眼睛成像中心(CEE-IC)。结合为个别项目开发并适应其需要的特定采集和处理算法，可以对炎症性眼病进行监测和分类。在使用角膜炎症、角膜水肿和视网膜变性等模型的实验研究中，进行了定量分析，包括对同一动物中病理血管随时间的三维量化。在计划的第二个资助期，该设施将扩大，目的是在细胞一级建立特定的光学相干层析成像(OCT)。为此，将安装一个显微OCT(MOCT)系统，该系统允许以低至1微米的分辨率对小鼠眼睛进行三维非侵入性体内研究。此外，还将探索使用专门处理的纳米颗粒来量化眼表炎症。创新的硬件和软件方法的临床翻译的潜力将被评估。总之，新的可能性将为所有涉及的项目带来优势。例如，随着时间的推移，临床上看不见的淋巴管的非侵入性成像，包括腔内细胞的可视化，将在相同的动物身上成为可能。使用mOCT将使结构和血管造影OCT成像相对于侵袭性组织学更具竞争力，因此有可能显着减少临床前研究中的动物数量。

In the first funding period, a multimodal experimental imaging facility for mice, the Cologne Experimental Eye Imaging Center (CEE-IC), was established. In combination with specific acquisition and processing algorithms, which were developed for and adapted to the needs of the individual projects, the monitoring and classification of inflammatory ocular diseases have been made possible. In experimental studies using models for e.g. corneal inflammation, corneal edema and retinal degeneration, quantitative analyses including the three-dimensional quantification of pathological blood vessels in the same animals over time were carried out. In the planned second funding period, the facility will be extended with the aim of establishing specific optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging on a cellular level. For this purpose, a microscopic OCT (mOCT) system will be installed, which allows for non-invasive in vivo investigation of murine eyes in three dimensions with a resolution down to 1 micrometer. Furthermore, the use of specifically addressed nanoparticles for quantification of ocular surface inflammation will be explored. The potential for the clinical translation of the innovative hardware and software approaches will be evaluated. Altogether, the new possibilities will bring advantages for all involved projects. For example, non-invasive imaging of clinically invisible lymphatic vessels including the visualization of intraluminal cells will be possible in the same animals over time. Using mOCT will make structural and angiographic OCT imaging more competitive to invasive histology and consequently has the potential to significantly reduce the number of animals in preclinical research.