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Categories: biotechnology & health, electronics & instrumentation

BSA 07-14: Fiducial Marker for Correlating Images

BNL Reference Number: BSA 07-14

Patent Status: U.S. Patent Number 7,965,820 was issued on June 21, 2011

Summary

(A) Cross-section of human hair under visible light illumination. The cuticle, cortex, and medulla are indicated. (B) FTIRM reflectivity image of the Au grid. The white arrow indicates the grid intersection, used for the image correlation. (C) Au SXRF microprobe image of the Au grid. (D) FTIRM image of the protein content in the hair, generated byplotting the Amide I peak area from1600 â€" 1700 cm-1. (E) XRF microprobe image of copper content in the hair.(F) A red-green-blue (RGB) color image illustrating the correlation of the protein from FTIRM (blue channel) and Cu content from XRF microprobe (red channel) in the tissue. The gold grid pattern from SXRF microprobe is placed in the green channel. Scale bar for all images is 20 μm.

This invention combines and precisely correlates images from synchrotron-based infrared (IR) and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) microscopes, enhancing insight into disease pathologies and better identifying the presence of environmental contaminants. This detailed combination of chemical information on organic components and trace element signatures, usually captured separately, offers a much more complete picture. A sample placed on a new, low trace element glass slide with a gold grid patterned on its surface can now be probed easily with high-resolution image correlation.

Description

The invention uses a substrate containing a gold grid pattern on its surface, which can be imaged with both fourier transform infrared microspectroscopy (FTIRM) and synchrotron X-ray fluorescence (SXRF) microscopy. A low trace element glass slide houses the gold grid with major and minor parts containing 25 and 12 nanometers of gold, respectively. This grid pattern works well with FTIRM because the reflectivity of gold differs as a function of thickness. The pattern can also be imaged with the SXRF microprobe because the gold fluorescence intensity changes with thickness. The grid pattern's IR reflectivity image and the gold SXRF image are used as fiducial markers for spatially overlapping the IR and SXRF images with results showing precise correlation and a spatial resolution of less than one pixel (i.e., 2â€"3 microns).

Journal Publication

• A new sample substrate for imaging and correlating organic and trace metal composition in biological cells and tissues (.pdf)

Press Releases

• A New Sample Substrate for Imaging and Correlating Organic and Trace-Metal Composition in Biological Cells and Tissues (.pdf)

Have Questions?

For more information about this technology, contact Poornima Upadhya, (631) 344-4711.